Isan language
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| Isan | ||
|---|---|---|
| ภาษาอีสาน pʰaːsaː iːsaːn | ||
| Spoken in | Thailand | |
| Region | Isan | |
| Total speakers | 23 million | |
| Ranking | 64 (1996) | |
| Language family | Kradai | |
| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1 | None | |
| ISO 639-2 | tai | |
| ISO 639-3 | tts | |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. | ||
Isan (Thai: ภาษาอีสาน, RTGS: phasa isan, IPA: pʰaːsaː iːsaːn) is the principal language of the Isan (northeastern) region of Thailand. A tonal language of the Tai language family, it is the main language of trade and communication in the Isan region, except for in cities and in media where it gives way to Thai.
The language is noted for its similarities to the Lao language spoken in the neighbouring country of Laos. This is because Isan was historically once a part of Laos (or more properly the Kingdom of Lan Xang), and also because large forced population transfers from Laos to Isan were undertaken at various points in history. In fact, the two languages are mutually intelligible and almost identical, with differences contributed mainly by neologisms created after the two areas were no longer a single political entity and modern Thai began to contribute to the Isan vocabulary. Although Lao and Thai are themselves closely related and somewhat mutually intelligible, and Isan is often considered a regional dialect of Thai, Isan is actually more akin to the Lao language and there are fewer problems in comprehension between speakers of Isan and Lao than between speakers of Thai and Isan. The language is still sometimes occasionally referred to as Lao, either by Thais pejoratively or by older Isan people who may yet regard themselves as part of the Lao ethnic group. Isoglossic differences in Isan mirror those on the other side of the Mekong, so that a speaker from Nongkhai sounds more like a speaker from Vientiane than he would with a speaker from Ubol, who may sound more like someone from Champasak. Nonetheless, there are unique tonal patterns and vocabulary distinct from Lao. There is no official standard, although radio broadcasts and traditional centres of morlam music in Isan have had a unifying effect on the language.
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[edit] Names
The language is sometimes referred to as 'Northeastern Thai' or 'Thai Lao'. Alternative Thai names include ไทยอีสาน, or Thai Isan (thai eesan, tʰaj iːsaːn) and ลาวอีสาน, or 'Lao Isan' (lao eesan, laːw iːsaːn). Whereas 'Isan' is the most common English transcription, other variants such as 'Eesan', 'Eesarn', and 'Isaan' can be found.
[edit] History
The word Isan literally means "North-East", and is a Thai adaptation of a Khmer (an unrelated language) toponym of Sanskrit origin. Since the establishment of the Mekong River as the frontier between Laos and Thailand, the language of Isan been influenced increasingly by Thai (especially through the medium of television, print and radio) and has further diverged from Lao. Nevertheless, Isan and Lao remain very similar. Thai is the main source of new words, and younger people are starting to pronounce Isan words as they are written in Thai. Although formerly written in the Lao alphabet, Isan is now largely an unwritten language, and the Thai alphabet is used whenever it is written.
Despite the growing influence of the Thai language, Isan remains an essentially Lao-like language. Historical forced population transfers from Laos to Isan re-enforced the Lao features in the past. More recently, large numbers of Lao arrived as refugees after the Vietnam War and the subsequent establishment of the communist Lao People's Democratic Republic. Growing trade, Lao day-labourers, cultural affinities, and popularity of the local music form, morlam — whose artists are popular on both sides of the Mekong — have stabilised Lao features of the Isan language. It still remains the case that though monolingual speakers of Thai may have a difficult time understanding Isan, an Isan speaker will readily understand Lao (and Thai due to being bilingual). Lao speakers can understand both Isan and Thai (due to television and radio), but may not speak Thai very well.
Isan people until the 1960s were recorded as Lao speakers and Lao ethnic people. Then Thaification policies were enacted to strengthen the central government and to discourage Isan people from identifying with the communist guerrillas in Laos. Despite government policies of assimilation and integration, Isan culture and language remain connected and nearly identical to those of neighbouring Laos.
The Isan language is spoken both at home and as an unofficial lingua franca between the Isan and non-Isan ethnic groups, such as the Khmer Surin or related Tai tribes like the Tai Dam. Due to bilingualism, Thai is the main language of business in the cities and is taught to the other minority groups as well. Although absent in most media, the popularity of morlam music and the presence of local Isan radio stations gives Isan a visible presence.
[edit] Phonology
Isan shares most of its phonology with the Lao language, although code-switching and Standard Thai influences leads some features non-native to the Isan language being adopted in certain cases.
- Lack of pronounced consonant clusters
Thai word เพลง song (phleng, pʰleːŋ) is pronounced as เพง (pheng, pʰeːŋ) but still written as เพลง.
- ร (r) is pronounced as ล (l) or ฮ (h)
Thai words รถ car (rot) and รำ dance (ram) become ลถ (lot) and ลำ (lam) (rarely seen) respectively, as in informal Standard Thai.
Thai words รัก love (rak) and ร้อน (ron, rɔːn) become ฮัก (hak) and ฮ้อน (hon, hɔːn) respectively.
(words pronounced with the h are generally written out with ฮ but generally not when pronounced as ล)
- ฉ, ช, and ฌ (ch/tɕʰ) is pronounced as ซ (s/s)
ฉบับ copy (chabap, tɕʰaʔbap) ช้าง elephant (chang, tɕʰaːŋ) and ฌาน meditative absorption (chan, tɕʰaːn) become ซบับ (sabap, saʔbap), ซ้าง (sang, saːŋ) and ซาน (san, saːn), respectively.
(ch/tɕʰ) and (sh/ʃ) are allophones in Thai, and the (sh/ʃ) pronunciation is becoming more common in Isan.
- ญ and ย (y/j) is sometimes pronounced as ญ and ย (ny, ɲ)
ผู้หญิง girl (phuying/pʰuːjiŋ) and ยาย maternal grandmother (yai/jaj) become ผู้หญิง (phunying/pʰuːɲiŋ) and ยาย (nyai, ɲaj).
- ญ and ย (y/j) is not pronounced as (ny, ɲ) if etymologically related to Lao letter ຢ.
ยา medicine (ya/jaː) and อยู่ (yu, juː) to be somewhere, not (nya) and (nyu); compare Lao ຢາ and ຢູ່.
- consonantal ว (w/w) is sometimes pronounced as ว (v/v)
เวร to turn (wen, weːn) becomes เวร (veːn).
- retention of historical Lao pronunciations survive even with Thai spelling
แม่โขง Mekong River (maekhong/mɛːkʰoːŋ) pronounced as (maekhong/mɛːkʰɔːŋ), compare Lao ນ້ຳຂອງ.
[edit] Orthography
The Isan language no longer functions as a written language, which is the sole domain of standard Thai. Formerly, Isan was, like Lao, written in a Mon-derived script known as Tua Tham (ตัวธรรม) (RTGS: tua tham, IPA: ɗua tʰam). This can only be found in old Buddhist manuscripts, but also continues to be the written language of the Tai Lüe. The Lao alphabet was also used until the complete integration of the Isan region into the Thai nation-state. When Isan is written down, the Thai alphabet is used, and words are spelt etymologically to their Thai counterpart where it exists, with the minor spelling changes as mentioned in the phonology section or left in their original Thai spelling. Lyrics to morlam songs are often transcribed in this method with the substitution of letters in some of the words. Romanisation of Isan is based on Thai models, as the Thai alphabet is used to write it, but there is no one universal system, but the Royal Thai General System of Transcription (RTGS) is most common. Very, very old people educated before the introduction of Thai state schools may still remember using the Lao alphabet, but they would use the archaic Lao spellings which are closer to Thai.
| Lao letter | Equivalent Thai letter(s) | Comments | IPA (Isan language) initial/final |
|---|---|---|---|
| ກ | ก | g/k | |
| ຂ | ข | Also replaces obsolete Thai letter ฃ | kʰ/k |
| ຄ | ค, ฆ | Also replaces obsolete Thai letter ฅ | kʰ/k |
| ງ | ง | ŋ/ŋ | |
| ຈ | จ | tɕ/t | |
| ສ | ฉ, ศ, ษ, ส | (tɕʰ/t) or (ʃ/t) in Thai is pronounced as (s/t) in Lao and (s/t) or (ʃ/t) Isan. | s or ʃ/t |
| ຊ | ช, ซ | (tɕʰ/t) or (ʃ/t) in Thai is pronounced as (s/t) in Lao and (s/t) or (ʃ/t) Isan. | s or ʃ/t |
| ຍ | ญ, ย | Also a semi-vowel. | ɲ/ |
| ດ | ฎ, ด | Sometimes used for ฑ. | d/t |
| ຕ | ฏ, ต | ɗ/t | |
| ຖ | ฐ, ถ | The Lao letter ຖ looks like the Thai ligature ฤ and is also the same shape as the Lao numeral 7. | tʰ/t |
| ທ | ธ, ท | Sometimes used for ฑ. | tʰ/t |
| ນ | ณ, น | Lao letterforms for ມ and ນ are often confused when read by Thai people. | n/n |
| ບ | บ | b/p | |
| ປ | ป | p/p | |
| ຜ | ผ | pʰ/ | |
| ຝ | ฝ | f/ | |
| ພ | พ, ภ | pʰ/p | |
| ຟ | ฟ | f/p | |
| ມ | ม | Lao letterforms for ມ and ນ are often confused when read by Thai people. | m/m |
| ຢ | ย | Sometimes used for อฺย. | j |
| ຣ | ร | Pronounced as l/n in informal Thai; replaced sometimes with l/n by ล and for h/ by ฮ. | h/ or l/n |
| ລ | ล | l/n | |
| ວ | ว | Also a semi-vowel; pronounced only as w/ in Thai. | v/, ʍ/ or w/ |
| ຫ | ห | Sometimes used before ง, ญ, น, ม, ย, ร, ล, and ว to alter tone. | h/ |
| ອ | อ | Used as a foundation letter for vowels; also a vowel itself. | ʔ/ʔ |
| ຮ | ฮ | In Isan, sometimes replaces ร pronounced as h/ . | h/ |
[edit] Tones
Isan, like most Lao dialects, has six tones. The Lao dialect of Luang Phrabang and Thai both have only five.
| Isan Tones | Long vowel, or vowel plus voiced consonant | Long vowel plus unvoiced consonant | Short vowel, or short vowel plus unvoiced consonant | Mai ek (อ่) | Mai tho (อ้) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High consonant | rising | low falling | high | mid | low falling |
| Mid consonant | low rising | low falling | high | mid | high falling |
| Low consonant | high | high falling | mid | mid | high falling |
There are a further two, relatively rare tone marks: mai tri (อ๊) and mai chattawa (อ๋); these always indicate a high and a rising tone respectively. The letter ห, which usually is h/ , is also a silent letter used before ง, ญ, น, ม, ย, ร, ล, and ว to treat them as high class consonants. The letter อ, used as a vowel, is considered a consonant upon which vowels are built when they are pronounced without consonants. It also imparts a mid class when used as a silent letter in certain words.
[edit] Grammar
Isan words are not inflected, declined, conjugated, making Isan, like Lao and Thai, an analytic language. Special particle words function in lieu of prefixes and suffixes to mark verb tense. The majority of Isan words are monosyllabic, but compound words and numerous other very common words exist that are not. Typologically, Isan is a subject verb object (SVO) language, although the subject is often dropped. Word order is an important feature of the language.
Although in formal situations, standard Thai is often used, formality is marked in Isan by polite particles attached to the end of statements, and use of formal pronouns. Compared to Thai, Isan sounds very formal as pronouns are used with greater frequency, which occurs in formal Thai, but is more direct and simple compared to Thai. The ending particles เดอ (doe, dɤː) or เด (de, deː) function much like ครับ (khrap, kʰrap), used by males, and คะ (kha, kʰaʔ), used by females, in Thai. (Isan speakers sometimes use the Thai particles in place of or after เดอ or เด.) Negative statements often end in ดอก (dok, dɔːk), which can also be followed by the particle เดอ and its variant.
- เพ่ินเฮ็ดปลาแดกเดอ (phoen het padaek doe, pʰɤn het paːdɛːk dɤː) He makes fish padaek.
- บ่เป็นหยังดอก (bo pen nyang dok, bɔː peːn ɲaŋ dɔːk) It does not matter.
[edit] Nouns
Nouns are not marked for plurals, gender nor are they declined for cases, and do not require an indefinite nor definite article. Plurals are often indicated with the use of classifiers, words to mark the special classes that nouns belong to. For instance, หม่า (maː, ma) 'dog' has the classifier โต (to, ɗoː) which, as its meaning 'body' implies, includes all things with legs, such as people, animals, tables and chairs. 'Three dogs' would be rendered as หม่า ๓ โต (ma sam to, maː saːm ɗoː), literally 'dog three classifier'.
| Isan | Thai | Lao | Category | |
| คน (ฅน), kʰon | คน (ฅน), kʰon | ຄົນ, kʰon | People in general, except clergy and royals. | |
| คัน, kʰan | คัน, kʰan | ຄັນ, kʰan | Vehicles, also used for spoons and forks in Thai. | |
| คู่, kʰuː | คู่, kʰuː | ຄູ່, kʰuː | Pairs of people, animals, socks, earrings, etc. | |
| ซบับ, saʔbap | ฉบับ, tɕʰaʔbap | ສະບັບ, saʔbap | Papers with texts, documents, newspapers, etc. | |
| โต, ɗoː | ตัว, ɗua | ໂຕ, ɗoː | Animals, shirts, letters; also tables and chairs (but not in Lao). | |
| กก, gok | ต้น, ɗon | ກົກ, gok | Trees. ต้น (or Lao ຕົ້ນ) is used in all three for columns, stalks, and flowers. | |
| หน่วย, nuɛj | ฟอง, fɔːŋ | ໜ່ວຍ, nuɛj | Eggs, fruits, clouds. ผล (pʰon) used for fruits in Thai. |
Verbs are easily made into nouns by adding the prefixes ความ (khwam/kʰwaːm) and การ (kan/gːan) before verbs that express abstract actions and verbs that express physical actions, respectively. Adjectives and adverbs, which can function as complete predicates, only use ความ.
- แข่งม้า (khaengma/kʰɛːŋmaː) to horserace (v.) nominalises into การแข่งม้า (kan khaengma/gːan kʰɛːŋmaː) horseracing (n.)
- เจ็บ (jep/tɕep) to hurt (others) (.v) nominalises into ความเจ็บ (khwam jep/kʰwaːm tɕep) hurt (caused by others) (n.)
- ดี (di, diː) good nominalises into ความดี (khwam di, kʰwaːm diː) goodness (n.)
Pronouns Pronouns are often dropped in informal contexts, and are often replaced with nicknames or kinship terms, depending on the relation of the speaker to the person to whom is being spoken. Pronouns can also change depending on the register of speech, with many of the more formal pronouns borrowed from formal Thai speech registers. The more formal the language, the more likely that pronouns will not be dropped and that formal pronouns would be used. Pronouns can be pluralised by adding พวก (phuak, pʰuak) in front of the pronoun, e.g., พวกข่อย (phuak khoy/pʰuak kʰɔːj) is the same as เฮา (hao) or พวกเฮา (phuak hao/pʰuak haw). Age and status is important in determining usage. Younger boys and girls names are often prefixed with บัก (bak, bak) and อี (i, iː) respectively. Older males and females use อ้าย (ai, ɑj) and เอี้อย (euay, ɯːaj) respectively instead. People who are much older may be politely addressed as aunt, uncle, mother, father, or even grandmother or grandfather depending on their age. It should be noted that Isan age-based name prefixes are often identical to or similar to vulgar, disparaging age-based name prefixes in Central Thai and should be avoided outside of Lao/Isan speaking regions in Thailand.
| Pronoun | Thai Royal/IPA | Thai Equivalent | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| ข่อย | khoy/kʰɔːj | ฉัน | I/me (informal, general) |
| ข้าน้อย | khanoy/kʰaːnɔːj | ผม (m.), ดิฉัน (f.) | I/me (formal) |
| เฮา | hao/haw | เรา | we/us |
| เจ้า | chao/tɕaw | คุณ | you (general) |
| ท่าน | than/tʰaːn | ท่าน | you (very formal) |
| เขา | khao/kʰao | เขา | he/him/she/her (formal, general) |
| คะเจ้า | khachao/kʰaʔtɕaw | พวกเขา | they |
| เพิ่น | phoen/pʰɤn | เขา | he/him/she/her (very formal) |
| มัน | man/man | มัน | it (very rude if used on a person) |
[edit] Adjectives and Adverbs
There is no general distinction between adjectives and adverbs, and words of this category serve both functions and can even modify each other. Duplication is used to indicate greater intensity. Only one word can be duplicated per phrase. Adjectives always come after the noun they modify; adverbs may come before or after the verb depending on the word. There is usually no copula to link a noun to an adjective.
- เด็กหนุ่ม (dek num, dek num) A young child.
- เด็กหนุ่ม ๆ (dek num num, dek num num) A very young child.
- เด็กหนุ่มที่ไว้ (dek num thi vai, dek num tʰiː vaj) A child who becomes young quickly.
- เด็กหนุ่มที่ไว้ ๆ (dek num thi vai vai, dek num tʰiː vaj vaj) A child who becomes young quickly.
Comparatives take the form "A X ก่วา B" (kwa, gwaː), A is more X than B. The superlative is expressed as "A X ที่สุด (thisut, tʰiːsut), A is most X.
- เด็กหนุ่มก่วาผู้แก่ (dek num kwa phukae, dek num gwaː pʰuːgɛː) The child is younger than an old person.
- เด็กหนุ่มที่สุด (dek num thisut, dek num tʰiːsut) The child is youngest.
Because adjectives or adverbs can be used as predicates, the particles that modify verbs are also used.
- เด็กซิหนุ่ม (dek si num, dek siː num) The child will be young.
- เด็กหนุ่มแล้ว (dek num laew, dek num lɛːw) The child was young.
[edit] Verbs
Verbs are not declined for voice, number, or tense. To indicate tenses, particles can be used, but it is also very common just to use words that indicate the time frame, such as พรุ่งนี้ (phung ni, pʰuŋ niː) today or เมื่อวานนี้ (meu wan ni, mɯː van niː) yesterday.
Negation: Negation is indicated by placing บ่ (bo, bɔː) before the word being negated.
- อีน้องกินหมากเล่น (i nong kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister eats tomatoes.
- อีน้องบ่กินหมากเล่น (bao bo kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ bɔː gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister does not eat tomatoes.
Future tense: Future tense is indicated by placing the particles จะ (cha, tɕaʔ) or ซิ (si, siː) before the verb.
- อีน้องจะกินหมากเล่น (i nong cha kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ tɕaʔ gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister will eat tomatoes.
- อีน้องซิกินหมากเล่น (i nong see kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ siː gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister will eat tomotoes.
Past tense: Past tense is indicated by either placing ได้ (dai, daj) before the verb or แล้ว (laew, lɛːw) after the verb or even using both in tandem for emphasis. แล้ว is the more common one, and can be used to indicate completed actions or current actions of the immediate past. ได้ is often used with negative statements and never for present action.
- อีน้องได้กินหมากเล่น (i nong dai kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ daj gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister ate tomatoes.
- อีน้องกินหมากเล่นแล้ว (i nong kin mak len laew, iːnɔːŋ gin maːk lɛn lɛːw) Younger sister (just) ate tomatoes.
- อีน้องได้กินหมากเล่นแล้ว (i nong dai kin mak len laew, iːnɔːŋ daj gin maːk lɛn lɛːw) Younger sister (definitely) ate tomatoes.
Present progressive: To indicate an on-going action, กำลัง (kamlang, gamlaŋ) can be used before the verb or อยู่ (yu, juː) after the verb. These can also be combined for emphasis. In Isan and Lao, พวม (phuam, pʰuam) is often used instead of กำลัง.
- อีน้องกำลังกินหมากเล่น (i nong kamlang kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ gamlaŋ gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister is eating tomatoes.
- อีน้องกินอยู่หมากเล่น (i nong kin yu mak len, iːnɔːŋ gin juː maːk lɛn) Younger sister is eating tomatoes.
- อีน้องพวมกินหมากเล่น (i nong phuam kin mak len, iːnɔːŋ pʰuam gin maːk lɛn) Younger sister is eating tomatoes.
The verb 'to be' can be expressed in many ways. In use as a copula, it is often dropped between nouns and adjectives. Compare English She is pretty and Isan สาวงาม (literally lady pretty). There are two copulas used in Isan, as in Lao, one for things relating to people, เป็น (pen, peːn), and one for objects and animals, แม่น (maen, mɛːn).
- นอกเป็นหม่อ (Nok pen mo, Nok peːn mɔː) Nok is a doctor.
- อันนี้แม่นสามล้อ (an nee maen sam lo, an niː mɛːn saːm lɔː) This is a pedicab.
[edit] Questions and Answers
Unlike English, which indicates questions by a rising tone, or Spanish, which changes the order of the sentences to achieve the same result, Isan uses question tag words. The use of question words makes use of the question mark (?) redundant in Isan.
General yes/no questions end in บ่ (same as บ่, 'no, not').
- สบายดีบ่ (sabai di bo, saʔbaj diː bɔː) Are you well?
Other question words
- จังได (changdai, tɕaŋdaj) or หยัง (nyang, ɲaŋ) เฮ็ดจังได (het changdai, heːt tɕaŋdɑj) What are you doing?
- ไผ (phai, pʰɑj) ไผขายไขไก่ (phai khai khai kai, pʰɑjkʰɑjkʰɑjgɑj) Who sells chicken eggs?
- ทำอลัย (thamalai, tʰamaʔlaj) Why? ไปเมืองทำอลัย (bo ma thamalai?, baj mɯːaŋ tʰamaʔlɑj) Why did he go to the city?
- ไส (sai, saj) Where? ห้องน้ำอยู่ไส (hong nam yu sai, hɔːŋnam juː sɑj) Where is the toilet?
- อันได (andai, andaj) Which? เจ้าได้กินอันได (chao kin andai, tɕaw gin andɑj) Which one did you eat?
- จัก (chak, tɕak) How many? อายุจักปี (ayu chak pi, aːju tɕak piː) How old are you?
- ท่อใด (thodai, tʰɔːdɑj) How much? ควายตัวบทท่อใด (khwai ɗua bot thodai, kʰwɑj bot tʰɔːdɑj) How much is that buffalo over there?
- แม่นบ่ (maen bo, mɛːn bɔː) Right?, Is it? เต่าไว้แม่นบ่ (Tao vai maen bo, ɗaw vai mɛːn bɔː) Turtles are fast, right?
- แล้วบ่ (laew bo, lɛːw bɔː) Yet?, Already? เขากลับบ้านแล้วบ่ (khao kap laew bo, kʰaw gap baːn lɛːw bɔː) Did he go home already?
- หรือบ่ (loe bo, lɤː bɔː) Or not? เจ้าหิวข้าวหรือบ่ (chao hio khao loe bo, tɕaw hiw kʰaw lɤː bɔː) Are you hungry or not?
- หรือ (loe, lɤː) Eh? (informal) เจ้ามักหรือ (chao mak leu, tɕaw mak lɤː) Like it, eh?
Answers to questions usually just involve repetition of the verb and any nouns for clarification.
- Question: สบายดีบ่ (sabai di bo, saʔbaj diː bɔː) Are you well?
- Response: สบายดี (sabai di, saʔbaj diː) I am well or บ่สบาย (bo sabai, bɔː saʔbaj) I am not well.
Words asked with a negative can be confusing and should be avoided. The response, even though without the negation, will still be negated due to the nature of the question.
- Question: บ่สบายบ่ (bo sabai bo, bɔː saʔbaj bɔː) Are you not well?
- Response: สบาย (sabai, saʔbaj) I am not well or บ่สบาย (bo sabai, bɔː saʔbaj ) I am well.
[edit] Vocabulary
Thai, Lao, and Isan share the greater part of their vocabulary and are all mutually intelligible to some degree, but Lao and Isan are clearly close if not identical and is mutually intelligible with almost no difficulty. The same cannot be said for the Thai language, as many common words are distinct but shared between Isan and Lao. As most Isan people are bilingual, and due to exposure in media and education, code-switching is a common feature, and adoption of Thai pronunciations for cognates, neologisms, and loanwords is affecting the language. Many cognate words in Lao, Thai, and Isan are from Pali, Khmer, and indigenous Mon-Khmer languages, and to a lesser extant, Chinese.
| Isan | Thai | Lao | English | Isan | Thai | Lao | English | |
| บ่, bɔː | ไม่, mɑj | ບໍ່, bɔː | no, not | ท่อใด, tʰɔːdɑj | เท่าไร, tʰawrɑj | ທໍ່ໃດ, tʰɔːdɑj | how much | |
| เฮ็ด, het | ทำ, tʰɑm | , het | to do, make | เว้า, vaw | พูด, pʰuːt | ເວົ້າ, vaw | to speak | |
| เฮียน, hian | เรียน, rian | ຮຽນ, hian | to learn | พู้น, pʰun | โน่น, noːn | ພຸ້ນ, pʰun | yonder | |
| หมากไม้, maːkmɑj | ผลไม้, pʰonmɑj | , maːkmɑj | fruit | น้ำแข็ง, nam kʰɛŋ* | น้ำแข็ง, nam kʰɛŋ | ນ້້ກ້ອນ, nam gɔːn | ice | |
| โพด, pʰoːt | เกินไป, gɤnpɑj | ໂພດ, pʰoːt | too much | เอิ้น, ɤn | เรียก, riːak | ເອີ້ນ, ɤn | to call | |
| หน่อยนึง, nɔːjnɯŋ | นิดหน่อย, nitnɔːj | ໜ້ອຍໜຶ່ງ, nɔːjnɯŋ | a little | เฮือน, hɯːan* | บ้าน, baːn | ເຮີອນ, hɯːan | house, home | |
| หลุด, lut | ลด, lot | ຫຼຸດ, lut | to lower | ไส้อั่ว, sɑj ua | ไส้กรอก, sɑj grɔːk | ໄສ້ອ່ົວ, sɑj ua | sausage | |
| ไอติม, ɑj ɗim | ไอศกรีม, ɑj saʔ griːm | , gaː lɛːm | ice cream | เปล่า, paw | เปล่า, plaw | ລ້າ, laː | plain (adj.) | |
| ย่าง, ɲaːŋ | เดิน, dɤn | ຍ່າງ, ɲaːŋ | to walk | ลูกกก, luːk gɔːk | ลูกคนโต, luːk kʰon ɗoː | ລູກກົກ, luːk gɔːk | older child | |
| หมากเล่น, maːk leːn | มะเขือเทศ, maʔkʰɯːatet | ໝາກເລ່ນ, maːk leːn | tomato | พ่อเฒ่า, pʰɔː tʰaw | พ่อตา, pʰɔː ɗaː | ພໍ່ເຖົ້າ, pʰɔː tʰaw | father-in-law | |
| อ้าย, ɑj* | พี่ชาย, pʰiː tɕʰɑj | ອ້າຍ, ɑj | older brother | เซา, saw | หยุด, yut | ເຊົາ, saw | to stop | |
| ดอกจำปา, dɔːk jampaː | ดอกลั่นทม, dɔːk lantʰom | ດອກຈຳປາ, dɔːk jampaː | frangipani blossom | หาหยาก, haːɲaːk | ไม่บ่อย, mɑj bɔːj | ຫາຫຍາກ, haːɲaːk | rarely | |
| หลาย, lɑj | มาก, maːk | ຫຼາຍ, lɑj | much, many | เบิ่ง, bɤŋ | ดู, duː | , bɤŋ | to watch | |
| โซกดี, soːk diː | โชคดี, tɕʰoːk diː | ໂຊກດີ, soːk diː | good luck | แซบ, sɛːp | อร่อย, aʔrɔːj | ແຊບ, sɛːp | delicious | |
| ม่วน, muan | สนุก, saʔnuk | ມວນ, muan | fun | อิหลี, iːliː | จริง, tɕiŋ | ອິຫຼີ່, iːliː | really | |
| มัก, mak | ชอบ, tɕʰɔːp | ມັກ, mak | to like | แต่, ɗɛː* | จาก, tɕaːk | , ɗɛː | from |
- น้ำก้อน (nam gɔːn) (cf. Lao ນ້້ກ້ອນ) is nearly obsolete in Isan, replaced by Thai น้ำแข็ง.
- เฮือน (and Lao ເຮີອນ) is etymologically related to formal Thai เรือน; บ้าน is also used in Isan and Lao (ບ້ານ).
- พี่ชาย (pʰiː sɑj) (and Lao ພີ່ຊາຍ) is etymologically related to Thai พี่ชาย and also used in Isan and Lao.
- จาก (and Lao ຈາກ) also used in Isan and Lao.
The primary difference between Lao and Isan are subtle differences in tone and numerous unique phrases. Some unique Isan words and phrases include:
- ซำบาย to be well (sambai, sambɑj), a unique Isan variant of the more common สบาย (sabai, saʔbɑj).
- เขอเคอ tomato (khoekhoe, kʰɤːkʰɤː) a unique Isan variant for หมากเล่น.
- บัก fruit (bak, bak) is another unique Isan variant of หมาก (บักหุ่ง vs. หมากหุ่ง, papaya).
- หุด kaffir lime (hut, hut) is a unique Isan word.
Although many words are shared between the three languages, differences can cause misunderstandings. For example, the Isan pronunciation of ควาย, or water buffalo, with a short vowel sounds similar to Standard Thai ควย, a slang word for penis. The word บักเสี่ยว (bak sio), which in Isan means friend, is used in Central Thai as a pejorative. Even Isan name prefixes, such as อี for girls is used pejoratively in front of women's names in Central Thai. Besides pejoratives, many words in Isan sound like other words, although context helps minimise this confusion. Since most formal and academic words are shared, it is the domain of normal conversation that will exclude Thai comprehension of a conversation between an Isan person and a Lao person.
[edit] References
- Hayashi, Yukio. (2003). Practical Buddhism among the Thai-Lao. Trans Pacific Press. ISBN 4876984549.
- Basic Isaan phrases (Some basic Isaan phrases with sound files).
- เรืองเดช ปันเขื่อนขัติย์. ภาษาถิ่นตระกูลไทย. กทม. สถาบันวิจัยภาษาและวัฒนธรรมเพื่อการพัฒนาชนบทมหาวิทยาลัยมหิดล. 2531.
- Keyes, Charles F. (1966). 'Ethnic Identity and Loyalty of Villagers in Northeastern Thailand.' Asian Survey.
- Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (ed.), 2005. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Fifteenth edition. Dallas, Tex.: SIL International. Online version: http://www.ethnologue.com/.
- [1]
- [2]
- Hattaway, Paul. (2004). Peoples of the Buddhist World: A Christian Prayer Diary. William Carey Library. ISBN 0878083618.
- Lao Language & Culture Site
- Omniglot: Lao script
- Hoshino, Tatsuo and Marcus, Russel. (1989). Lao for Beginners: An Introduction to the Spoken and Written Language of Laos. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 0804816298.
- Enfield, N. J. (2007). A Grammar of Lao. Mouton de Gruyter Publishers. ISBN 3110185881.
- Cummings, Joe. (2002). Lao Phrasebook: A Language Survival Kit. Lonely Planet. ISBN 1740591682.
- Mollerup, Asger. Thai- Isan- Lao Phrasebook. White Lotus, Bangkok, 2001. ISBN 9747534886.
