Thai nicknames

Recently I learned (because of some drama series I have been watching), about most Thai people having a one-syllable nickname, often (but not always) an English word.

And on a tangent from that, that the Thai language does not have a first-person pronoun analogous to the English "I", so Thai speakers use their nickname where we would use a first-person pronoun in a sentence.

I wonder if the prevalence of Buddhism in Thailand is somehow involved in this linguistic phenomenon.

@kevin-eleven said
Recently I learned (because of some drama series I have been watching), about most Thai people having a one-syllable nickname, often (but not always) an English word.

And on a tangent from that, that the Thai language does not have a first-person pronoun analogous to the English "I", so Thai speakers use their nickname where we would use a first-person pronoun in a se ...[text shortened]... wonder if the prevalence of Buddhism in Thailand is somehow involved in this linguistic phenomenon.

Funny, I spent a year in Thailand and never knew that.
But then I never learned more than a dozen Thai words.

@jj-adams said
Funny, I spent a year in Thailand and never knew that.
But then I never learned more than a dozen Thai words.

I only learned about it from watching some East-Asian shows recently, and wondering why someone would be named "Golf" or "Bright".

I've always been interested in other languages, but I think I would have a harder time learning spoken Thai than spoken Chinese (meaning official Chinese instead of Cantonese -- I imagine it's probably impolite to call it Mandarin these days).

Thailand has even more linguistic naming oddities. People change their names often, to suit changes in their lives. The paperwork is minimal and if you lose touch with someone databases won't help you. My Thai friend has had 4 official names since I've known her, and only one was due to marriage.

Thai does have first person singular pronouns (i.e. pronouns for "I" and "me"​​) — a masculine form and a feminine form. So I don't know what this thread is premised on.

Maybe, like in Spanish, subject pronouns are often omitted in a sentence because the verb form makes it clear what the subject is.

English requires the "I" and "you" in "I study" and "you study" because the verb has the same form after both pronouns. But in Spanish one need not (and so should not) say "yo estudio" or "tú estudias," because the different verb forms "estudio" and "estudias" have the "yo" (I) and "tú" (informal you) information built into them.

I'll edit this link in here about Thai pronouns: http://www.thai-language.com/id/825840

@kewpie said
Thailand has even more linguistic naming oddities. People change their names often, to suit changes in their lives. The paperwork is minimal and if you lose touch with someone databases won't help you. My Thai friend has had 4 official names since I've known her, and only one was due to marriage.

Youths are subject to so much crap from their elders. They don't get to pick their name, their minds are hammered with religious claptrap at a tender, impressionable age, and so on.

I think all 18-year-olds should have the right to choose a new legal name free of charge and with minimal paperwork.

@soothfast said
Thai does have first person singular pronouns (i.e. pronouns for "I" and "me"​​) — a masculine form and a feminine form. So I don't know what this thread is premised on.

Maybe, like in Spanish, subject pronouns are often omitted in a sentence because the verb form makes it clear what the subject is.

English requires the "I" and "you" in "I study" and "you study" be ...[text shortened]... to them.

I'll edit this link in here about Thai pronouns: http://www.thai-language.com/id/825840

The pronoun is also included in german verb forms and I understand the sentence without the actual mention of the subject, but it is considered wrong or at least inferior style.

@ponderable said
The pronoun is also included in german verb forms and I understand the sentence without the actual mention of the subject, but it is considered wrong or at least inferior style.

And articles! Yes, Germans always attach those articles to their nouns. Like "Das Leben" instead of "Leben" for "life" or "existence."

German is my strongest foreign language, but it is unknown to me why pronouns are seldom dropped even though it is a highly inflected language. Russians drop their pronouns all the time, and do away with articles completely.