A man of many words

HE MAY BE 85 but veteran professor Chamnong Thongprasert, a fellow of the Royal Institute Thailand, has no intention of retiring just yet.
A lexicographer by profession as well as out of love, he recently launched the second edition of the 2011 Royal Institute Dictionary (RID), a tome made more special by the fact that it includes 2,000 new words, among them several introduced by His Majesty the King. Among these are kaem-ling – monkey cheeks – in reference to the Royal projects to prevent flooding, kleng-din, which refers to the prevention of soil degradation and erosion through the use of Vetiver grass, as well as the Chaipattana Aerator, New Theory (for managing agricultural land) and sufficiency economy.
Other new words have to do with the law, history, Thai classical music, flora and fauna and there’s more contemporary vocabulary too including sad (fighting), spa, tad-tor (cut and paste), tua-sam-rong (substitute), ded-sa-ra-tee (cool), kaong-soong (respectable object/subject) and hang-sup-pa-sin-kha (department store).
The methodology of the Dictionary Revision Committee of the Royal Institute has remained virtually unchanged for more than 80 years since its establishment in 1933. It has since published four fully revised editions of the dictionary – in 1950, 1982, 1999, 2011 – as well as many intermittent reprints with minor revisions.
Chamnong, a Thai scholar, has been a member of the institute for more than five decades and has served as its president for 13 years.
“Language is constantly evolving. There is a cycle of birth, ageing, sickness and death and a vocabulary that’s particular to each. The rise in new words that are linguistically correct poses no problem but so many are incorrect. These have to be discussed during review, both by entry and by sense according to language principles, meanings and prescription. We collect new words that society has adopted over a period of five years, and if the word is still current, then we will add it to the new edition of RID,” Chamnong explains.
As a linguist with interests in philosophy, religion, Pali and Sanskrit, he says that Thai language makes him proud and urges his fellow Thais to take the same pride and make sure they use words correctly.
“It’s our aesthetic cultural heritage. There are no more than 50 countries in the world that have their own languages, fewer than 30 have alphabets, and even fewer – less than 10 – have their own written numerals. The Thai language is very rich with an abundance of words that respond to specific uses. For example, we have plenty of pronouns by which to call ourselves such as chan, theu, ku, mung, aeng, ka, ka-pra-put-ta-chao and more), while English has only I and you. We have words to call a grandmother or grandfather that clearly define from what side of the family he or she comes. Language is alive and constantly changing. Today, many Thais like to speak a mix of Thai and English.”
Pojaman Pongpaiboon, an adviser to Office of the Basic Education Commission, agrees and adds that it would be impossible to take account of all the popular words that crop up in the language because these come and go according to fads.
“A dictionary is most useful when it is not on the shelf. Teachers should encourage young students to get used to finding new words from the dictionary. Every library must have at least one dictionary. We cannot stop new technology so teachers must adapt its functions to benefits the learning process,” she says.
“Language is beautiful and young students should be taught to write essays and read poems so that the aesthetics of the language will be absorbed by the new generation.
“A dictionary is not medicine. It may be regarded as unnecessary for some professions but it is always helpful.”
In line with the Royal Institute’s mission to undertake and encourage research in every branch
 of knowledge beneficial to the nation and the people, Chamnong notes that “the Thai language is the national identity. It is diverse and pleasurable. I remember how on one occasion while we were preparing the 1982 edition, we were deciding how we wanted to define the word ‘manut’ (human), as man is a rational animal and high-minded.
“It is very important to use the language correctly, properly and logically thus creating effective communication. A great way of learning is to ask questions if you have even the smallest doubt. Ask for the answer from experts in the subjects or do your research though the references that are available.”
 LOOK IT UP
- The Royal Institute Dictionary second edition is published by Nanmeebooks Publishing and are available at most bookstores for Bt750.