Contrastive Study of Spontaneous Romanization of Thai by French Speakers and the Royal Thai Institute System
Main Article Content
Abstract
The romanization of Thai seems to have been problematic for a long time despite the promulgation of the RTGS system of the Royal Thai Institute in 1999. Each tends to romanize Thai words according to his/her linguistic preference and habit. This article aims to study the Romanization of Thai by French speakers by comparing it to the RTGS system and to propose a romanization of Thai which is simpler and more adapted to the French users. The data are collected from a word list in the MP3 format and listened to by 30 French speakers. The results demonstrate that French speakers tend to transcribe Thai words differently from the RTGS system due to phonological and orthographic differences. Many French graphemes are adopted such as É, È, Ï, and Ô. Establishing a transcription system for French speakers is recommended to facilitate a more natural pronunciation in some text types such as menus in Thai restaurants, guidebooks, and initial Thai language learning.
Downloads
Article Details
References
Aroonmanakun, W. (2008). Thai Orthography and Transliteration between Thai and English. Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University.
Catach, N. (2005). L’orthographe française. Armand Colin.
Frankfurter, O. (1960). Some Suggestions for Romanizing Siamese. Journal of the Siam Society, 3(2), 52-61.
Griswold, A. B. (1960). Afterthoughts on the Romanization of Siamese. Journal of Siam Society, 81(1), 30-68
Kanchanawan, N. (2011). Transliteration, Terminology, Transcription from Siamization to Anglicization. Odeon Store.
Liamprawat, S. (2002). Thai Phonetics and Phonology. Department of Thai, Faculty of Arts, Silpakorn University.
Naksakul, K. (2013). Thai Sound System. Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University.
Naowasate, J. (2011). Les emprunts du thaï dans les guides touristiques en français : Lonely Planet, Michelin et Le Routard [Mémoire de Maîtrise, Université Thammasat].
Petithuguenin, P. (1912). Method for Romanizing Siamese. Journal of the Siam Society, 9(3), 1-12.
Ronnakiet, N. (2006). Notes on Romanization of Thai. Thammasat University Journal, 15(1), 6-23.
Roungtheera, T. (2017). Francisation des toponymes thaïlandais dans les guides touristiques sur la Thaïlande : analyses linguistiques et traductologies [Thèse de doctorat, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle-Paris 3].
Roungtheera, T. (2022). Transliteration of Thai Words in French: A Case Study of Transliteration Menus and Translated Literature. Journal of Language and Linguistics, 40(1), 1-29.
Royal Institute of Thailand. (1999). Principle of Romanization for Thai Script by Transcription Method. Royal Institute of Thailand.
Tawanpiyayo, J. (2010). La transcription des mots thaïs dans les guides touristiques en français: Lonely Planet, Michelin et Le Routard [Mémoire de Maîtrise, Université Thammasat].
Timcharoen, P. (1984). Romanization of Thai. Journal of Cartography, 28, 61-83.
Vajiravudh. (1913). The Romanization of Siamese Words. Journal of the Siam Society, 9(4), 1-10.