The Accentual System of Thai Polysyllabic Words
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THE ACCENTUAL SYSTEM OF THAI POLYSYLLABIC WORDS Udom Warotamasikkhadit1 Abstract 1. Introduction Many Thai grammarians seem to ignore intonational rhythms that exist in the At present, the pronunciation of Thai pronunciation of Thai words. It is language is in a state of chaos. No one erroneous to think that Thai words are knows for sure how to pronounce certain monotonous and without rhythms. The words in the Thai language. If one looks Thais have pronounced words with fixed through the Dictionary of the Royal pronunciation patterns for years but many Institute ofB.E. 2525, one will find words grammarians and Thai scholars ignore with more than one pronunciation more them. At the moment pronunciation of often than one will find in an English, the language is chaotic because many Thai French, or German dictionary. Nowadays people do not know how to pronounce radio and television announcers often Thai words. They often make the wrong mispronounce words and are influential cuts at morpheme or word boundarie::s. sources of mispronunciation. If you tum The Royal Institute rules for the on two different radio stations, you will pronunciation of Thai words concerning find two different pronunciations of the the gemination of the final consonant of a same word. It is very confusing for young syllable with an inserted [a] in conjoining children who must decide which one is words, as found in the dictionary of the correct. The Royal Institute of Thailand Royal Institute of B.E. 2525, must be held seems to compromise that two responsible for these problems. This paper pronunciations are acceptable. points out the word rhythms of Thai as found in daily speech of the Thai people. 2. The origin of the problems We cannot really blame the radio and television announcers for their mispronunciations. They have to take the oral diction examination administered by the Department of Public Relations and supervised by the Royal Institute of Thailand in order to acquire an announcer certificate. The Department of Public Relations of Thailand follows pronunciation rules written in the Dictionary of the Royal Institute of B.E. 1 Professor Emeritus, Ramkhamhaeng 2525 and usually invites representatives University. Downloaded from Brill.com10/06/2021 10:19:56AM via free access MANUSYA: Journal of Humanities 3.2, 2000 from the Royal Institute to be present This statement is incorrect on during the oral diction examination. Thus, several co unts. Firstly, some the Royal Institute of Thailand cannot conjoining Thai words must be avoid being blamed for causing the pronounced with the syllable final pronunciation chaos that is rampant in gemination plus an intruding /a/, Thailand these days. such as rmJ'IjU [krommakht,m] 'the title of the prince of the There are a number of reasons why people fourth rank' (a Cambodian and a consider the Royal Institute to be the origin of the problems (Phasit Chitphasa. Thai word), YJUYl~Yio [thunnasap] 1998). ' money invested; collateral or funds used as capital' (a Thai and 2.1 The pronunciation rules on a Sanskrit word), ff')')YI~-3 [s(}.ppha page (7) of the Dictionary of sil)] 'all the things', (a Sanskrit the Royal Institute of B.E. 2525 (6th edition) says; "Conjoining and a Thai word), &n1u [sakkawan) Pali-Sanskrit words must be read ' even one day' (a Thai and a according to the principles-i.e. the Thai word). Secondly, certain word final must be geminated conjoining Pali-Sanskrit words are together with an intruding /a/. not pronounced with a syllable The pronunciation of this type final gemination plus an intruding of words is provided, such as Ia!, such as i'tJUll'l [ chaynaat] 'the Yll~tum')lJ [Yll~uu:::th] [thaarunna name of a province in Central kam], "!'IJUl!;jn1')lJ ["!fl'IJ::Ul~fl::nl] Thailand', UYJlJlilU [p(}.thumthaanii) [ S~Jkkh(}.naa~kam ], 11.hi')')lJ [1tJtl:: 'the name of a province north of Bangkok', v;;fllJl') [pnid{itrnaan) ~1] [ruupp(}.tham] and another type 'one who conquered Mara, i.e. that can be pronounced two the Buddha' (a modified Sanskrit ways -- i.e. the pronunciation word (by changing a /v/ to a /ph/) according to the principles and the pronunciation according to popular and a Sanskrit word), nmtinEJru usage, where the pronunciation [phaaprak] 'image' (a Sanskrit and according to the principles will a Sanskrit word), l!'b'WlJU'):::LYlff come first, such as 1.h ~i~fflfffll [matchimpratheet] ' India' (a Pali [U')::l11f1~fflf1, U')::l11f1fflf1] [pr(}.WC;lt- and a Sanskrit word). Thirdly, not ' ' .., d only conjoining words must be tjs(}.at, prawatsaatJ. lJ1H.JlJfff1Ei l pronounced with the syllable final [11 fl Yl::: tJlJ lJ::: ftf1 Ell' iT~ Yl:: tJlJ fff1 Ell] gemination plus an intruding /a/, [mattayommasi~ mattayoms~k this phenomenon occurs within Sll3], ~fl lJfll')W [~"lJlJ :: mu, ~fllJflll:J] the word itself, such as lJ'Utl [mukhaya) 'the first; a chief; one [?~Jdommakaan, ?~Jdomkaan ]". principal or superior one; that 33 Downloaded from Brill.com10/06/2021 10:19:56AM via free access The Accentual System of Thai Polysyllabic Words which is in, coming from has become 'Vi [ph] m certain or belonging to the mouth, or face; words. Thus, it is impossible that being at the head, or at to pronounce Thai words in the beginning' from Sanskrit the same way the Hindus 'mukhya' where khy is written as pronounce Pali-Sanskrit words. a combined character and no /a/ The Thais pronounce Pali is present between kh and y, i'm.J1 Sanskrit words according to [rattanaa] 'gem' from Pali 'ratana' the Thai pronunciation system. It is no use to try to retain the Pali and Sanskrit 'ratna', 1'lfty1 [witcha Sanskrit pronunciation. We must yaa] 'a wise or learned man' from accept that all borrowed words Sanskrit 'vijiia', i'l:ltl! /wits~nu/ from Pali or Sanskrit are now Thai 'Vishnu' but the syllable final words, and follow the Thai gemination plus an intruding Ia! pronunciation rules. appears in all the preceding three words in Thai. 2.3 Most Thai scholars of the Thai language ignore the importance 2.2 The compilers of the of word rhythms or lack Dictionary of the Royal Institute an understanding of the nature allow too much influence of the of the Thai language. If one Pali-Sanskrit pronunciation over surveys the textbooks on Thai Thai words. We all know that grammar or on the Thai language a long time ago the Thais changed from the Ayuddhya periods up the pronunciation of Pali-Sanskrit to present, word rhythms and characters to suit their pronunciation prosody have never been an system. For example, fl, ~ ' 'lf, lll, <¥1, issue, with the exception of poetry meters found in Chindamani, I'll, l'l, li, 'Vi, or i1 is no longer a voiced where again modern · Thai consonant. {), ~ , '1'1, I'll, ru , '1:1 , or w is textbooks had misinterpreted the heavy and light scheme as no longer a retroflex, and certain intended by the authors of characters, such as {) [t] has Chindamani. It would be more become [d], ~ [t] has become~ [d], appropriate to incorporate linguistic 2 knowledge in an explanation of [p] has become 'U [b] , and 1 [ v ] u Thai pronunciation. Research on phonology and prosody (Gandour 1976, Haas 1964, Henderson 1973, 2 Hiranburana 1971, Luangthongkum v written as 1 in Thai is a voiced labio-dental 1977, Luksaneeyanawin 1983, consonant in Sanskrit and it can cluster with r Noss 1972, Sagarik 1965, or q such as vrddhi or 1t]Yln. Since 1 cannot Sutadarat 1978, Thawisomboon cluster with r in Thai, 1 is changed to l'i for the 1955, Warotamasikkhadit 1965, reason that they both have the same point of 1967, 1999) has been conducted articulation at bilabial in order to suit the Thai by Thai and foreign scholars, but phonological system. 34 Downloaded from Brill.com10/06/2021 10:19:56AM via free access MANUSYA: Journal ofHumanities 3.2, 2000 it is ignored by the Royal Institute /phraam/ 'Brahman' where l1 is of Thailand. It is hard to believe that the compilers of the silent, LnfJ'S~ /k.iat/ 'honor' where 'S Dictionary of the Royal Institute and ~ are silent, and ~tJl'lHi'l;i have not heard about this research that clearly establishes the l?inthanuu/ where 'VI'S are silent in importance of word rhythms and Thai. prosody in the Thai language. 3.4 The phonological hiatus must 3. Nature of the language coincide with a morpheme boundary such as ~ilffll1n~ 3 .1 The Thais prefer to pronounce /ratwisaahaklt/ 'state enterprise', four-syllable words as three l'VlfJlm /witthayaa/lGxm/ 'resource syllable words, a phenomenon also found in many other languages, person'. For example, in the English words vegetable or comfortable the 4. Points of articulation overrule second syllable is omitted. In the gemination rules Thai case, tJ'Ul11.J~ /nonbqrii/ 'the name of a province adjacent Point of articulation plays a very to Bangkok in the north', or important role in gemination rules of the Thai language. It must be noted that the /inthfmuu/ 'epaulet' is ~tJl'lH'I;i following rules are very crucial to pronounced with three syllables gemination rules. instead of four. 4.1 If the point of articulation of 3.2 Syllable omission or syllable the final consonant of the contraction often appears in rapid preceding syllable is at the same or connected speech, for example place or close to the point of vhr hn /pnitlook/ 'the name of articulation of the initial of the a province in northern Thailand' following syllable, gemination of the final consonant of the for Yill~ iM /pnits~nulook/, lJl11'~v preceding word is not needed.