Language Use
LANGUAGE USE IN THAILAND: A COMPARATIVE STUDY TO THE CASE OF BHUTAN
Namgay Thinley March 2002
CONTENTS ABSTRACT iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv ____________________________________________________________
________ 1. INTRODUCTION 1 Statement of the problem Purpose of the study 2. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 2 Introduction Background information on language use in Thailand Language situation Standard Thai The present status of Thai Background information on language use in Bhutan Language situation Dzongkha The present status of Dzongkha Einer Haugen’s fourfold model of the stages in language planning Introduction Definition Selection Codification Implementation Elaboration 3. FIELD STUDY Methodology The sample Procedure 4. RESULTS Presentation Background information Language choice and attitude Language use Findings Thailand Bhutan 5. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS APPENDIXES Appendix 1: Questionnaire REFERENCES 9
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ABSTRACT
Language use in Thailand and Bhutan presents two different scenes. In Thailand, the national language, Standard Thai, is the majority language used in every domain. In Bhutan, the national language, Dzongkha, is the lingua franca for the country, but there is a recent trend toward using English as widely as Dzongkha, and usage of English in every domain is on the rise. Standard Thai usage is firmly rooted in Thai society through its prevalence in education, internal administration, the media, and publications. Dzongkha, on the other hand, is less often used by Bhutanese than Thai is used by Thais. At the same time, English is gaining popularity in Bhutan. This paper provides a study of the reasons for this difference in language use of Standard Thai in Thailand and Dzongkha in Bhutan. This paper is broadly divided into two parts: a literature review and a field study. The literature review describes the current status of use of Standard Thai and Dzongkha and then uses Einer Haugen’s fourfold model of language
Namgay Thinley March 2002
CONTENTS ABSTRACT iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv ____________________________________________________________
________ 1. INTRODUCTION 1 Statement of the problem Purpose of the study 2. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 2 Introduction Background information on language use in Thailand Language situation Standard Thai The present status of Thai Background information on language use in Bhutan Language situation Dzongkha The present status of Dzongkha Einer Haugen’s fourfold model of the stages in language planning Introduction Definition Selection Codification Implementation Elaboration 3. FIELD STUDY Methodology The sample Procedure 4. RESULTS Presentation Background information Language choice and attitude Language use Findings Thailand Bhutan 5. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS APPENDIXES Appendix 1: Questionnaire REFERENCES 9
10
17
19 23
ii
ABSTRACT
Language use in Thailand and Bhutan presents two different scenes. In Thailand, the national language, Standard Thai, is the majority language used in every domain. In Bhutan, the national language, Dzongkha, is the lingua franca for the country, but there is a recent trend toward using English as widely as Dzongkha, and usage of English in every domain is on the rise. Standard Thai usage is firmly rooted in Thai society through its prevalence in education, internal administration, the media, and publications. Dzongkha, on the other hand, is less often used by Bhutanese than Thai is used by Thais. At the same time, English is gaining popularity in Bhutan. This paper provides a study of the reasons for this difference in language use of Standard Thai in Thailand and Dzongkha in Bhutan. This paper is broadly divided into two parts: a literature review and a field study. The literature review describes the current status of use of Standard Thai and Dzongkha and then uses Einer Haugen’s fourfold model of language
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