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Thai is one of the oldest languages in East and South-East Asia. It is a
monosyllabic language which uses five tones (high, mid, low, rising, and
falling tone) to alter the meaning of a single syllable. This makes it
rather tricky to learn for most Westerners used to speaking non-tonal
languages.
The Thai script, introduced by King Rham
Khamhaeng in 1283, consists of 44 consonants and 48 vowels, and is of
Sanskrit origin.
Words and Phrases
When being polite the speaker ends his or her sentence with 'khrap' (for
men ["r" is only in Bangkok, so all the other parts of Thailand pronounce "khap"])
or 'kha' (for women). khrap [kha] and kha are also commonly used to answer
'yes' or to show agreement.
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