Issue 1:
Toy
Jay Smith
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Tell Her Toy Called
A difficulty in living in Thailand is breaking through the language barrier. Thai is tonal like Chinese and though you might say the right word, if you use the wrong pitch, you're saying something entirely different.
Take names. Thai women have a family nickname to go along with their more formal given name. My wife's given name is Chomnard, while her nickname is Thim. Her sisters are Thiew, Thi, Thing, Thaa and Thoey.
A familiar woman's nickname is Toy, whcih means small or petite. My wife has three Toy friends. Each pronounces their name differently. There's flat Toy, pronounced "Tooooy" flat out; there's rising Toy, pronounced "To" down low and the "oooy" rising up high; and there's falling Toy, pronounced "To" up high and the "oooy" going down low.
To Western ears, they sound alike.
Here's an example. Flat Toy calls me on the phone, finds my wife is out, and says, "Tell her Toy called." I pass the word on to my wife, inadvertently changing flat Toy to rising Toy. My wife phones the wrong Toy.
After a series of these mismatches, the women worked out a system. After that, I'd get a call and a Toy would say, "This is flat Toy. Is your wife home?"
~Jay Smith
Jay writes fiction and memoirs from his home in Thailand, and is a frequent contributor to Cayuse Press publications.
© 1999 by Jay Smith. All Rights Reserved.
© 2000-2002 by Cayuse Press. All Rights Reserved.
This page updated April 23, 2002.