According to a national survey of young Thai youth, four out of ten believe that the “correct” Thai language should be used exclusively in official speech.

Facebook and Twitte

r reduce the language skills of Thai students. The Ministry of Culture calls on everyone to return to the lost tradition of writing ordinary letters. A government-wide study by the ministry found that 40 percent of Thai youth are confident that the “correct” Thai language is only suitable for “office” use. About a third of young Thais are oblivious to the spelling, abbreviation, or grammar mistakes that characterize SMS and social media messaging.

“Excessive obsession with Facebook and Twitter, as well as intense text messages, distorts the language. But we can’t stop people from keeping in touch with each other, ”Culture Minister Intarasombut Nipit shares with the Associated Press, commenting on the study’s findings. Each generation has its own slang, but it is necessary to educate children in the skills of knowing the official Thai language, he added.

“We must preserve our national language. And if no one understands how important this is, we are doomed, ”Nipit told the Thai Post. – Today children no longer write ordinary letters to each other. They forget grammar. “

Here is an example of one of the common Internet acronyms: when a child wants to type “ha ha” to show that he is laughing at something – like the English LOL (laughing out loud – I’m dying with laughter; I’m not laughing), they use number 5: The word “five” in Thai is pronounced like “ha”.

The Ministry of Culture has developed a campaign, including letter writing and essay contests, to promote correct writing. In addition, an appeal was sent to TV presenters, correspondents and media persons with a request to use the correct Thai on the air. The survey surveyed 6,500 young people and girls over the age of 13 across the country. No margin of error was made.

The minister’s commentary was released on the eve of Thailand’s National Language Day, which is celebrated on 29 July. “Sometimes I don’t even understand that our children speak their own language,” Nipit admitted. “The government is committed to preserving the Thai language as much as possible.”