Thai language: Relationships and Family

Today’s blog will review vocabulary about relationships and family.

Family & Relationships

Taeng gnaan = to marry; to be married; marriage

saamee = husband

paan rai yaa = wife

faen = boyfriend or girlfriend

A note: Thais don’t generally distinguish between a legal registered marriage and a long term relationship where you’ve been living with your girlfriend. Thus, if you’ve been living with your Thai girlfriend for 4 years, Thais will probably refer to you as husband and wife, and will not really understand if you insist that she is simply your girlfriend.

Additionally, it is accepted as normal in Thailand that if a man is financially stable enough to afford it, he will have more than one wife; indeed he may have several families. The second wife is called “mia-noi”.

Gik = a relationship with someone of the opposite sex that involves — at the least — a close friendship, and may actually involve sex. The English equivelant is a ‘fuck-buddy’, someone who is more than a friend, but not quite a boyfriend or girlfriend. A gik is not your paan-rai-yaa, faen or mia noi.

Krawbkrua = family

Paw = father

Mae = mother (like the sound a sheep makes ‘baaaa’)

paw-mae = parents

loog = baby or specific child

dek = child (in general)

Note: in Thai shai denotes males; sao or ying denotes females.

Loog-shai = son

Loog-sao = daughter

dek-shai = young boy

dek-ying = young girl

Note: in Thai Pee is used to refer to someone older than you; Nong is used to refer to someone younger than you.

pee-nawng = siblings

Pee-shai = older brother

Nong-shai = younger brother

Pee-sao = older sister

Nong-sao = younger sister

loog-pee loog-nawng = cousin

laan = nephew/niece/grandchild

peuen = friend

There you go. Now when you meet a Thai girl and she asks you, “Mee Pee-shai mai kaa?” you’ll know that she’s asked you if you have older brothers.

If you do, you can answer “Mee” (have)

If you don’t, you can answer “Mai mee” (not have)

Note: in the questions below, you will notice that every sentence ends with the word “kaa”. If you don’t know why, you may want to click here.

Here are some common questions you may get during the Isaan inquisition:

Mee paan-rai-yaa mai kaa? = Do you have a wife?

Taeng-gnaan mai kaa? = Are you married

Krawbkrua khun mee gee kohn kaa? = Your family has how many people? (gee is how many; kohn is people)

Mee loog mai kaa? = Do you have children?

Mee loog gee kohn? = How many children do you have? (literally translated: “Have children, how many people?”)

Cheu loog-shai arai kaa? = What is your son’s name? (arai means ‘what’)

Cheu paan-rai-yaa arai kaa? = What is your wife’s name?

Chan yaag ben gik, kaa! Go-dai chai-mai kaa? = I want to be your sex-buddy! Is that okay?

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Tagged as: family relationships, Thai Language, Thailand