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30-552: Sukhumvit Road is named after the fifth chief of the Department of Highways, Phra Bisal Sukhumvit . It is one of the four major highways of Thailand, along with Phahonyothin Road (Highway 1), Mittraphap Road (Highway 2) and Phetkasem Road (Highway 4). Sukhumvit Road begins in Bangkok, as a continuation of Rama I and Phloen Chit Roads which span Pathum Wan District . Starting from where

60-612: A dominant language in all aspects of society in Thailand, Thai initially saw gradual and later widespread adoption as a second language among the country's minority ethnic groups from the mid-late Ayutthaya period onward. Ethnic minorities today are predominantly bilingual, speaking Thai alongside their native language or dialect. Standard Thai is classified as one of the Chiang Saen languages—others being Northern Thai , Southern Thai and numerous smaller languages, which together with

90-533: A four-way distinction among stops and affricates . The maximal four-way occurred in labials ( /p pʰ b ʔb/ ) and denti-alveolars ( /t tʰ d ʔd/ ); the three-way distinction among velars ( /k kʰ ɡ/ ) and palatals ( /tɕ tɕʰ dʑ/ ), with the glottalized member of each set apparently missing. The major change between old and modern Thai was due to voicing distinction losses and the concomitant tone split . This may have happened between about 1300 and 1600 CE, possibly occurring at different times in different parts of

120-525: A syllable that formerly began with a voiceless consonant (including glottalized stops). An additional complication is that formerly voiceless unaspirated stops/affricates (original /p t k tɕ ʔb ʔd/ ) also caused original tone 1 to lower, but had no such effect on original tones 2 or 3. The above consonant mergers and tone splits account for the complex relationship between spelling and sound in modern Thai. Modern "low"-class consonants were voiced in Old Thai, and

150-588: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Thai language Thai , or Central Thai (historically Siamese ; Thai: ภาษาไทย ), is a Tai language of the Kra–Dai language family spoken by the Central Thai , Mon , Lao Wiang , Phuan people in Central Thailand and the vast majority of Thai Chinese enclaves throughout the country. It is the sole official language of Thailand . Thai

180-591: Is across the road from the Korean Cultural Centre. The areas of Soi Cowboy (between Soi 21, also known as Asok Montri Road , and Soi 23) and Nana Entertainment Plaza (Soi 4) are packed full of gogo bars and other places of prostitution . Restaurants of various levels of luxury exist all along the road, as well as hotels including famous names such as The Westin , JW Marriott , Sheraton , Ramada Hotel and Suites Bangkok Sukhumvit , and Four Points by Sheraton . Also several shopping malls are found, like

210-500: Is based on the register of the educated classes by Central Thai and ethnic minorities in the area along the ring surrounding the Metropolis . In addition to Central Thai, Thailand is home to other related Tai languages . Although most linguists classify these dialects as related but distinct languages, native speakers often identify them as regional variants or dialects of the "same" Thai language, or as "different kinds of Thai". As

240-553: Is based on the dialect of the central Thai people, and it is written in the Thai script . Hlai languages Kam-Sui languages Kra languages Be language Northern Tai languages Central Tai languages Khamti language Tai Lue language Shan language others Northern Thai language Thai language Southern Thai language Tai Yo language Phuthai language Lao language (PDR Lao, Isan language ) Thai has undergone various historical sound changes. Some of

270-959: Is easily accessible on the Sukhumvit line of the BTS Skytrain , which runs from Khu Khot in Lam Luk Ka , Pathum Thani through the Silom Line interchange at Siam up to Kheha in the centre of Samut Prakan province . The MRT 's Sukhumvit Station interchanges with the Skytrain at Asok. The Eastern portion of the Sukhumvit Line is built on top of Sukhumvit Road (including Rama I and Phloen Chit Roads) from Siam to Kheha station. The Sois are numbered from west to east, with odd numbers branching off north-east of Sukhumvit, and even numbers branching off south-west. The area between Sukhumvit Soi 1 and Sukhumvit Soi 63

300-453: Is popular as residential area for western expatriates. Japanese nationals tend to prefer from Soi 21 Asok intersection upwards, especially Soi Thong Lo . Rentals tend to be higher in the even numbered streets between Soi 8 and Soi 28 and in the odd numbered streets between Soi 15 and Soi 39. Soi 12 is occupied mainly by Indian expatriates. The beginning of Soi 12 also has a Koreatown with several Korean restaurants and grocery stores. Koreatown

330-479: Is the language of television, education, news reporting, and all forms of media. A recent research found that the speakers of the Northern Thai language (also known as Phasa Mueang or Kham Mueang) have become so few, as most people in northern Thailand now invariably speak Standard Thai, so that they are now using mostly Central Thai words and only seasoning their speech with the "Kham Mueang" accent. Standard Thai

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360-427: Is the most spoken of over 60 languages of Thailand by both number of native and overall speakers. Over half of its vocabulary is derived from or borrowed from Pali , Sanskrit , Mon and Old Khmer . It is a tonal and analytic language . Thai has a complex orthography and system of relational markers . Spoken Thai, depending on standard sociolinguistic factors such as age, gender, class, spatial proximity, and

390-676: The Department of Sanitation and as his career progressed, he was responsible for a rapid increase in Thailand's road infrastructure during the 1930s and 1940s. He was the Director General of the Royal Irrigation Department in 1942–3. He was part of the Free Thai Movement and was part of a delegation sent to the United States by Pridi Banomyong at the end of World War II. This delegation aimed to positively influence

420-547: The Khmer system first before the Thai borrowed. Old Thai had a three-way tone distinction on "live syllables" (those not ending in a stop), with no possible distinction on "dead syllables" (those ending in a stop, i.e. either /p/, /t/, /k/ or the glottal stop that automatically closes syllables otherwise ending in a short vowel). There was a two-way voiced vs. voiceless distinction among all fricative and sonorant consonants, and up to

450-609: The Northwestern Tai and Lao-Phutai languages, form the Southwestern branch of Tai languages . The Tai languages are a branch of the Kra–Dai language family , which encompasses a large number of indigenous languages spoken in an arc from Hainan and Guangxi south through Laos and Northern Vietnam to the Cambodian border. Standard Thai is the principal language of education and government and spoken throughout Thailand. The standard

480-484: The Thai-speaking area. All voiced–voiceless pairs of consonants lost the voicing distinction: However, in the process of these mergers, the former distinction of voice was transferred into a new set of tonal distinctions. In essence, every tone in Old Thai split into two new tones, with a lower-pitched tone corresponding to a syllable that formerly began with a voiced consonant, and a higher-pitched tone corresponding to

510-613: The United States in assisting Thailand with post-war reconstruction despite Thailand's support for Japan during the war . He addressed the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs and sought assistance from Abbot Low Moffat who headed the South East Asian Affairs Division of the Department of State which helped improve Thailand–United States relations . This Thai biographical article

540-705: The boundaries of the districts of Khlong Toei , Pathum Wan and Watthana meet, it runs the entire length of the border between Khlong Toei and Watthana, then passes through Phra Khanong and Bang Na districts. It then crosses the border between Bangkok and Samut Prakan Province and subsequently continues east through Chachoengsao Province , south through Chonburi Province skirting the Khao Khiao Massif , east through Rayong Province , south-east through Chanthaburi Province , and ends at Ban Hat Lek village in Trat Province . In Chonburi Province it passes through

570-515: The local patois as pronounced in Guangdong Ayutthaya , the old capital of Thailand from 1351 - 1767 A.D., was from the beginning a bilingual society, speaking Thai and Khmer . Bilingualism must have been strengthened and maintained for some time by the great number of Khmer-speaking captives the Thais took from Angkor Thom after their victories in 1369, 1388 and 1431. Gradually toward the end of

600-547: The most significant changes occurred during the evolution from Old Thai to modern Thai. The Thai writing system has an eight-century history and many of these changes, especially in consonants and tones, are evidenced in the modern orthography . According to a Chinese source, during the Ming dynasty , Yingya Shenglan (1405–1433), Ma Huan reported on the language of the Xiānluó (暹羅) or Ayutthaya Kingdom, saying that it somewhat resembled

630-415: The period, a language shift took place. Khmer fell out of use. Both Thai and Khmer descendants whose great-grand parents or earlier ancestors were bilingual came to use only Thai. In the process of language shift, an abundance of Khmer elements were transferred into Thai and permeated all aspects of the language. Consequently, the Thai of the late Ayutthaya Period which later became Ratanakosin or Bangkok Thai,

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660-484: The royal vocabulary according to their immediate environment. Thai and Pali, the latter from Theravada Buddhism, were added to the vocabulary. An investigation of the Ayutthaya Rajasap reveals that three languages, Thai, Khmer and Khmero-Indic were at work closely both in formulaic expressions and in normal discourse. In fact, Khmero-Indic may be classified in the same category as Khmer because Indic had been adapted to

690-535: The terminology "low" reflects the lower tone variants that resulted. Modern "mid"-class consonants were voiceless unaspirated stops or affricates in Old Thai—precisely the class that triggered lowering in original tone 1 but not tones 2 or 3. Modern "high"-class consonants were the remaining voiceless consonants in Old Thai (voiceless fricatives, voiceless sonorants, voiceless aspirated stops). The three most common tone "marks" (the lack of any tone mark, as well as

720-454: The towns of Chonburi , Laem Chabang , Bang Lamung township , Si Racha , and Pattaya . In the capital, Sukhumvit Road serves as a main commercial street, and this section is often congested, even at late evening or early morning hours. The Chalerm Maha Nakhon Expressway has an exit at Soi 1. Ratchadaphisek Road crosses Sukhumvit at the Asok (Asoke) intersection. The Sukhumvit area of Bangkok

750-423: The two marks termed mai ek and mai tho ) represent the three tones of Old Thai, and the complex relationship between tone mark and actual tone is due to the various tonal changes since then. Since the tone split, the tones have changed in actual representation to the point that the former relationship between lower and higher tonal variants has been completely obscured. Furthermore, the six tones that resulted after

780-435: The upscale The Emporium shopping center. It also harbours the eastern bus station at Soi 63, also known as Ekkamai Road . Major sois off Sukhumvit Road in Bangkok and other parts: 13°44′34.09″N 100°33′1.46″E  /  13.7428028°N 100.5504056°E  / 13.7428028; 100.5504056 Phra Bisal Sukhumvit Phra Bisal Sukhumvit ( Thai : พระพิศาลสุขุมวิท ), born Prasob Sukhum (ประสบ สุขุม)

810-508: The urban/rural divide, is partly mutually intelligible with Lao , Isan , and some fellow Thai topolects . These languages are written with slightly different scripts, but are linguistically similar and effectively form a dialect continuum . Thai language is spoken by over 69 million people (2020). Moreover, most Thais in the northern (Lanna) and the northeastern (Isan) parts of the country today are bilingual speakers of Central Thai and their respective regional dialects because Central Thai

840-449: Was a thorough mixture of Thai and Khmer. There were more Khmer words in use than Tai cognates. Khmer grammatical rules were used actively to coin new disyllabic and polysyllabic words and phrases. Khmer expressions, sayings, and proverbs were expressed in Thai through transference. Thais borrowed both the Royal vocabulary and rules to enlarge the vocabulary from Khmer. The Thais later developed

870-627: Was the fifth chief of the Department of Highways in Thailand . Sukhumvit Road , one of Thailand's major highways, is named after him. He was the son of Chao Phraya Yommaraj (Pun Sukhum) , regent to King Rama VIII and Minister of the Interior from 1922 - 1926. Prasop studied in the United States at Phillips Exeter Academy (class of 1919) and MIT (class of 1923), graduating from Course I with his dissertation titled "A study of traffic at Governor Square, Boston, with suggestions for its regulation". He

900-613: Was the first Thai person to graduate from MIT. While in college, he formed a musical duo with Phisit Arthacinta called the 'Siamese Twins', which according to a review in Brooklyn Life consisted of "some of the more famous Siamese songs, together with interpretations of American ragtime". He was a founder of the American University Alumni Association and was later the chairman of the organization for 39 years. Returning to Thailand he became an assistant engineer at

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