Culture

Thai is the national language of Thailand. It originated from Southern China and has been enriched by Khmer, Sanskrit, and Pali influences. It is a tonal language with a distinctive phonology which can make it difficult for foreigners to learn. Besides the official language, each of the 4 country’s regions has its own dialect. English is commonly spoken in tourist areas in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, or in the different beach areas (Phuket, Samui, etc.).

About 95% of the Thai are Theravada Buddhist. However, Buddhism religion in Thailand is strongly influenced by traditional beliefs regarding ancestral and natural spirits, which have been incorporated into Buddhist cosmology, as well as by Indian Brahmanic religion and Mahayana Buddhism.

Nowadays popular in most Western countries, Thai cuisine is particularly renowned for the balance of five fundamental flavors: Sour, Sweet, Salty, Bitter, and Spicy. Rice, plain or sticky, is the staple component of Thai Cuisine usually coming with many complementary dishes served concurrently while noodles generally come as a single dish (soup or stir fried). If chopsticks are used for noodle soups, Thai food is generally eaten with a fork and a spoon. The fork, held in the left hand, is used to push food into the spoon. It is also common practice for North Thais and hill tribe peoples to eat sticky rice with their right hands by making it into balls dipped into side dishes and eaten.

Thai art was traditionally primarily Buddhist: painting was confined to illustration of books and decoration of buildings, while sculpture was almost exclusively of Buddha images. However, Thai contemporary art is becoming increasingly significant on the international scene and Kukrit Pramoj and Chart Kobjitti (Literature), Apitchatpong Weerasethakul (Cinema), or Tawan Dachanee (Painting) have contributed in putting Thailand on the art map.

Showing greeting, farewell, or acknowledgment, one of the most distinctive Thai customs is the “wai” generally involving a prayer-like gesture with the hands and a bow of the head. If in public, physical affection demonstrations are common between friends but less between lovers. Because the Thai people consider the foot to be the dirtiest and lowest part of the body, and the head the most respected and highest part of the body, touching someone on the head or placing one’s feet at a level above someone else’s hear is considered rude. It is also customary to remove one's footwear before entering a home or a temple.