Thai

Thai can refer to the language, the people, or the nation of Thailand. The Thai people form the principal ethnolinguistic group of Thailand and are citizens of the country, which is ethnically diverse and shaped by regional cultures and minority communities.

The Thai language, or Standard Thai, is the official language of Thailand and is used in government, education, media, and daily communication. It belongs to the Tai-Kadai language family and is a tonal language with five tones. It is written with the Thai script, an abugida derived from the Old Khmer script; vowels are written around the consonants and can appear before, after, above, or below them.

There are several regional varieties of Thai. Central Thai forms the basis of Standard Thai, while Isan Thai is closely related to Lao and is widely spoken in the northeast; Northern Thai and Southern Thai have distinct phonology and vocabulary. Thai includes loanwords from Pali, Sanskrit, Khmer, Chinese, and English.

The Thai script and language have long national significance and are reinforced by education and media. Thai uses honorifics and a system of formality that reflects social relationships, and it remains central to Thai literature, administration, and everyday life.