Language barriers in Thailand

Guess I could start this off. 

Thai is the official language of Thailand, with what is commonly referred to as Central Thai, being taught in schools and used for official business.  Each region has its own dialect and they are not always understood by people from other parts of the country. 

There is a more formal language for the royals and also one for the monks.  You sometime need to learn more than one word to refer to something as different classes of people use more formal or polite terms.  If you learn Central Thai you will be understood but you may not understand the response you get, especially if you travel around the country and off the beaten track.

Safely ensconced in an expat ghetto or tourist mecca it may be possible to get by without speaking the language but you are really missing out on a lot.  Since I speak Thai and advocate learning the language I can’t be of much help with survival tips for non-Thai speakers.  I will leave that to someone else.

It's hard to say if don't know local language to do any thing here. Even normal life in buying and utilities not easy to do any thing.
May improve in future use English language here.
But fact I see if you are uneducated person you learn fast second language but if you are educated and prefer English then I saw hard to person adopt second languages.
Hope it's help full for you.
And keep in mind without local language you have no option at all. And in limited survival options it's to difficult understand laws, culture and needs and option. Even you join as family life.
Suggest to you before final any thing once plan visit few times then decide.

Hello,

Learning a new language is a part of the expat process. Let's find out how crucial it is to know the language in Thailand.

Hello and Sawasdee khrap,

        Learning a new language "should be part of the expat process." The language isn't crucial, the Central Thai, or Bangkok Thai is usually understood by most people.

What is the official language in Thailand, and what are the other popular spoken languages?

It's very similar to other cultures, I can go to a small village near my hometown in Germany, where I grew up where people speak an unbelievable slang/dialect, almost impossible for me to understand.

33 % of Thailand is considered Isaan ,even the Isaan language is so different from province to province, other words are being used, and then a different tone fora word and all in a sudden you'll find out that you don't understand them. I had my pick up full with relatives on a trip to Mukdahan, only around 260 km away from our place and nobody could understand their Isaan! Soop Booree ( smoke cigarettes) is Soop Jaah, which means medicine. Then you've got people from Cambodia who are not being understood by ordinary Isaan folks and so on..

We're currently in the South, near Krabi province and they also have their slang and use of words you've got to get used to. When we were in the north, and were asking where the waterfall was, they didn't understand me, nor my Isaan wife, so I can say it wasn't mispronounced by me.

We didn't understand them, nor did they understand us. But we found a solution and were using a mix of words....lol

IMOHO, I believe that foreigners should learn the local dialect where they want to settle down, because that's where they'll mainly have to communicate with others.

Is it possible to live in Thailand and get by without speaking the language?

You can live in Pattaya, or Phuket without speaking Thai, but I don't think that it's possible to live here for longer without Thai language skills.

How do you manage to communicate with the locals if you don't speak the native/official language fluently?

I speak Isaan, ( in our area Lao/Isaan, but of course are there times where I can't follow if they're using for me unknown words, but i do my best to get better. When I'm travelling, I usually speak clear and slowly and it's always funny when people point out that I'm from Isaan....

What are some popular and useful phrases that expats absolutely need to know?

Useful to know are greetings/ goodbye, I'm hungry, how much is that?, where is.....? Can you speak English? Not spicy, please, Where can I buy....?, Where's a car/motorbike mechanic shop?, Where can i buy medicine?, How far is...............away? And a few more, YouTube offers some great lessons for beginners. Very useful is to learn numbers from 1 to 1,000, then it's easy to understand how much an item will cost. And of course how to be polite, a thank you very much with a big smile is always helping a lot.
Can you share some tips about how to survive in Thailand on a daily basis without speaking the language?

I'd use a phrase book to get around, but also start to learn the language when staying here for longer.

Kind regards,

    Mike

With my being unable to understand or speak the language, I decided to declare myself somewhat deaf and mute in the Thai language. I am also illiterate in Thai since the orthography is one I'm still wrapping myself around. Thai, being a tonal language, presents a myriad of pitfalls for the learner re being understood.

Those linguistic shortcomings left me with having to rely on the ability to understand and express ideas and feeling through tone-of-voice without uttering a word, only intellectual grunts. As a sketch artist, the skill to draw a picture or even stick figures in a pinch gave me the ability to sketch my needs and desires with a pen and a pocket-sized notepad. This has been especially helpful when shopping a the hardware store for example -- I find a picture of the item I need online and sketch it before I go shopping. In this modern age, we can even convey stuff through images on the internet if it is available.

The ability to convey ideas by using body language is another very valuable asset. Basic pointing skills are mandatory. Showing phrases from a phrasebook to a Thai speaker does not always work since literacy or eyesight on the part of the interlocutor may come into play, so then what? My cell phone is a best friend as I could always call a Thai speaking friend to help me out when I am out on a limb. I also carry a note pad with the survival phrases that I had written down -- language I thought that I would need the most -- That strategy works around 25% of the time for me.

All of the above techniques are called communication strategies. Among other skills and trades, I'm a seasoned English language teacher who has taught English to all kinds of newcomers at all levels. So, I humbly reversed the role and put the burden upon myself -- I put myself into my learners' shoes when I first ventured to Thailand knowing that I have a penchant for veering off of the beaten track.

One very late evening / very early morning, I jumped off a train in Nakhon Sawan and asked the employees at the train station to help me find a hotel. Not a soul could speak English, so they called a taxi driver who knew some English, woke him up from sleep to come and get me. When he finally arrived, i realized that he did not not have a great English vocabulary. Maybe he knew around 200 words in English, but I was wowed by his ability to understand me when I kept things simple and on topic, and i was super wowed to note his ability to flexibly rearrange his 200 words into meaningful phrases that I could understand. 200 key words and a few useful phrases -- I learned a big lesson about masterfully wielding a second language with limited resources. And so, along with my survival strategies, I learned a valuable lesson from the taxi driver i.e. the ability to manipulate a second language based on a limited foundation of resources. Nice!

As for the literacy aspect, the reading and phonics are attainable -- There are some programs where one can learn the system in two or three months. So, you can sound out the words through regular practice with the symbols. You will probably not understand what you are reading aloud unless it is a sign or something you are looking for, but at least that is a positive step toward literacy.

Thai is a beautiful language spoken by a nation of for the most part a beautiful and welcoming people. It is easy to garner the desire and enthusiasm to acquire the basics of the target language at the functional level before moving on to the next level of acquiring the language at the interpersonal and conversational level. The whole country is our classroom. We live in a mobile world. I like to embrace the challenge of learning the host language, and now and then I remind myself to enjoy the process!   

I hope this helps those of us who are at the beginner level. Best . . . dcb

When i move here back in 2011, I start out near 2 foreigner i know from holiday here in 2010, But they try to help me to much, So after 3 month i move to a area where i know no one, And where i think 99.X% did not speak english.
Sure some know a few words here and there.

And i have no problem at all, I pick up all the Thai numbers and around 40 words (Maybe more or maybe less) on my holiday in 2010, That and Body language, Finger "language", Sound and so on was all i need, And a few times, Print out what i was after.

I go on trips with people from the area and we have a great time together, They show me around, Take my to the place they grow up, Meet their family, Friends and so on.
I know a lot of trust come into play here, But i enjoy it all, And it turn out to the best.

I Ask for help to get internet, Go buy some furniture and so on.
And got all of that.

And yes, Sometime we have some fun moments when we misunderstand each other, But that part of the fun.

I return to the area some years later when i have learn Thai, And we have a great time again, And i was ask to go on trip again to see my good thai friends family, As he like me to meet them again, Now that i was able to talk to them, Because they like me a lot.

Sure live is easy when know the language, But one dont NEED it to live here.
And one can easy live outside Tourist area all so.

I think it is much more about the foreigner "mindset" that come into play here.
So many foreigner are sure it is impossible before they try, They dont have a open mind, And not positive about it.

Maybe age come into play all so ?
I was 41 years when i move here.

I be told by many "older" foreigner that they never is going to do the things i did in the beginning, And the few times some other foreigner saw me, Say he think i was acting "Strange and silly", stand there use my body & hands, Make some sound. ha ha

I really like @davidcolinburt post, He is the first person i hear / read from that all so use some of the "skill set" i use in the beginning. :-)

Kindly.

I have lived on Phuket Island non-stop for 10 years.
I also have lived with 4 Thai ladies, in these 10 years, at my residences, and yet I speak zero Thai.
If I did speak Thai, I doubt I could have lived here this long.
Not to be rude, but spoken language is quite overrated, and eye-contact, voice-tone, and body gestures are 70%+ in any conversation, face-to-face with anyone, in any Country, Thailand included.
(in my opinion)

Not to be rude, but in my opinion reading is quite overrated, simply holding the book, smelling the ink, feeling the texture of the page is all that is needed from a book.  The words and their meaning are highly overrated.  

(obviously I am joking) 

Because knowledge of English is very poor especially in comparison with many other Asian countries, itvis not easy living in Thailand and not speaking Thai. Even taxi drivers have an especially poor command or comprehension of English which is very bad.

I can speak some Thai, but it I really couldn’t, I would use the google translate and show them the translated Thai words, and it works! People here understand mostly.

Lots of questions there. One can live in Thailand without knowing the language, but there are maybe 200 words or phrases in any language that one needs to know.  The numbers are really necessary, and very, very basic phrases such as "I want......don't want......how much.....how many.....what time.....come.....go.....when.....where.....turn left.....turn right.....water......ice.....bottle.....glass......" 

Secondly, Thai really don't expect one to know their language, so as others have said, some basic words and phrases and body language helps. 

Next, you really need a Thai friend for he more complicated tasks such as issues with cable, electricity, etc.

Next, some people will just shut you off if you try to speak Thai.  They are not used to foreigners speaking it, so are not keen to try to listen to what you are asking or saying.  Just the other day I asked a lady "what is this?"  She couldn't understand me, although I have asked this countless times to countless other people and they understood me. Don't expect to always get answers even though you may be saying correctly.

Finally, if you are in the tourist areas of Bangkok, speak English.  The locals like to practice their English and some will be insulted if you don't speak it.  They will perceive you are saying they are not smart enough to speak it.  There is a good paper from Chulalongkorn University posted on Academia.Org (so its free) called "Do Thais really like Farang to speak Thai" (or something like that) and it has some interesting insights. Choke Dee (Thai for good luck.....which in Vietnamese means "put it in" and is sometimes used as a sexual reference there.....so be careful)

I have heard these arguments and opinions over the years, while in the presence of other foreigners, and I have never agreed with them.  I have always been met with a sigh of relief when people find that I can speak Thai, not incredulity.

Correct me if im wrong 🙏🙏
its just my opinions, the berrier in thailand about their language,i think not that hard to understand,if we know what their meaning,
maybe first time you feel weird hear the "krub" (khap) after each word or "ka" same with me 😁but after few times and had a friend who teach me not all of phrase,i still understand them what they said.
actually you can ask them with english toonif you want to bargain or bring the calculator for the price you want to bargain.
amd if you want to ask a address,you can give them the address of your hotel/hostel that you printed,.
you cant use google translate,sometimes have a different meaning.

I should have been clearer.  I have found in the rural areas - or even in Chiang Mai - Thai certainly do appreciate one speaking Thai.  But in the tourist areas of Bangkok (say Silom or Asoke) in the venues inhabited largely by foreigners, many of the Thai workers will resent one speaking Thai because it is an insult to them.  They perceive it saying they are not capable of speaking English.  The paper I referenced from Chulalongkorn University here in Bangkok speaks of this.

I lived in Bangkok for thirty years but moved up north many years ago so I am not current on attitudes in areas which depend on foreigners to make a living.  Still, even my friends who spoke excellent English preferred to speak Thai in Thailand.  The only person I regularly speak English with these days is my wife, oddly enough.  We have developed our own communication style where I speak English to her and she speak Thai to me.

Of course, if someone insisted on speaking English with me I would be willing to do so, as long as it did not limit our ability to communicate efficiently.

Hello,

Thanks for the tip but I'm learning Thai.