Course

Distance

£ 29 + VAT

Description

  • Type

    Course

  • Methodology

    Distance Learning

  • Class hours

    4h

Learn to speak Thai to an elementary level. Learn 500 essential Thai words and phrases. Perfect your accent by listening to native Thai speakers. Focus on the vocabulary that you need. Suitable for: Thai PDQ is a fun, holiday-style course aimed at beginners wanting to learn Thai.

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Course programme

Contents:
  • 1 x 64 page illustrated colour course book
  • 4 x 60 minute support CDs
Why learn the Thai language?
From breathtaking mountains and rain forests to clean sandy beaches, Thailand is an undeniably beautiful, exotic and exciting country. Learning Thai gives visitors a unique perspective of Thailand's rich culture and friendly locals. Give yourself a chance to get the most out of Thailand and start learning Thai today. Thai Grammar Thai is a tonal language, so the pitch or tone with which a word or syllable is pronounced determines its meaning. For example the Thai word 'maa' can mean 'horse', 'dog' or 'come' depending on the tone with which it is pronounced.
More confusingly 'klay' means either 'near', when pronounced with one tone or 'far', when pronounced with another!
While this sometimes causes the western learner problems in the initial stages, the grammar compared with more familiar European languages, is relatively easy.
Like many other south-east Asian languages, Thai can use the same form of a noun to indicate both singular and plural meanings and the same form of the verb to indicate a variety of tenses.
Although Thai does not have a rigid grammatical structure, it does have some fascinating idiosyncrasies. For example, there is no single word for 'yes' in Thai. Vowels in Thai are sometimes written on top of a consonant, sometimes underneath it and sometimes surrounding it on three sides.
Thai Writing Thai is written in an alphabetical script that originated in South India. The earliest surviving writings are stone inscriptions dating back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.
Since then many letters have undergone considerable changes in appearance, and to read the old script you need special training.
One of the most striking features of the modern Thai writing system is the absence of the spaces between words. Letters generally flow uninterruptedly through a sentence.
When spaces do occur, they often correspond to some form of punctuation mark in English such as a full stop, comma or question mark. Thai itself seldom uses punctuation marks and there are no capital letters in the Thai script.
Finally . . .
Should you be lucky enough to visit the bustling city of Bangkok, be sure to use the abbreviated name otherwise it will take you some time to pronounce. The city's full name is:
"KRUNGHEEP - PHRAMAHAA NAKHOON BOWOON - RATTANAKOOSIN MAHIN THARAAYUTTAYAA MAHAA DILOK -PHIPHOP NOP PHARAT RAAT CHATHAANII - BURII ROM UDOM SANTISUK. (Tone marks omitted).
or in other words:
"The City of Gods. The Great City. The Residence of the Emerald Buddha. The Impregnable City (of Ayutthaya) of God Indra. The Grand Capital of the World endowed with nine precious gems. The Happy City, abounding in enormous Royal Palace which resembles the Heavenly Abode where reigns the Reincarnated God. A City given by Indra and built by Vishnukarn."

Thai

£ 29 + VAT