Eating Culture
In the old days, Thai people ate with their bare hands. And there was no specific time to have meals. When P. Pibulsonggram became the third Prime Minister of Thailand (1938-1944), he launched a campaign to make Thais consume not more than four meals a day. At this time also Thai people started to use a spoon and fork as a tool for eating food. The reasons behind this campaign were to show civilization and to prevent germs existing on the hand from getting into the body. Nowadays, not only the way of eating, but the choice of food also has changed. Namphrik-plathu, a traditional Thai dish is replaced with salad and soup for some city inhabitants. Moreover, most teenagers prefer chips to Thai desserts because of the value of modernization. Namphrik-plathu or fried mackerel with shrimp
paste dip, a traditional Thai dish, and barbecue,
a popular dish of today
Language
The Thai vocabulary contains large numbers of words of Western origin. Those words arrived with traders, sailors, missionaries, films and publications. It has become a fashion for Thais to use English words in their conversations despite the availability of Thai equivalents. People believe that this is a way to show modernization and their high level of education. Several words have been adopted and adapted until hey sound like Thai words. For example, the English word "number" has become "ber" in Thai. The Thais just do away with its first syllable. Similarly, "tutor", the verb, has become "tu" and "racing" has become "sing".
Dress
Part of P. Pibulsonggram's cultural reform campaign required that Thai women should wear their hair long and have their breasts properly covered. Even wrapping the chest with a piece of cloth was not allowed, since it was considered uncivilized. Phasin* was strongly promoted to be women's costume instead of chong-kraben**. It was recommended that Thais should wear shoes as well. This campaign stimulated Thais to pay attention to fashion. Nowadays, the government is promoting Thai silk and other kinds of native fabrics in order to promote Thai culture.
Education
Formerly, monasteries were the only venues of education. Buddhist monks took on a teacher's role.The content of the study mainly dealt with reading, writing, astrology and herbal treatment. Most pupils were boys because at that time Thai parents did not see any benefits of letting their daughters learn to read and write. They thought that their daughters would soon have to get married and stay home, doing household chores and raising their children. It was not until the early 20th century that, due to the influence of the Western world, Thai women began to be treated equally as men, and were encouraged to receive education. The first school of Thailand whose name is unknown was set up in the Grand Palace in 1877 to educate noblemen's children. And the first school for general people, established in 1884 was Wat Mahannoppharam school in Bangkok.
Greeting
Thais use "wai" as a way to greet each other. It is done by placing two palms together in front of the chest. At present, handshake is frequently used, especially in business circles. However, most Thais still "wai" each other and say "sawatdi", (meaning hello) at the same time. When answering phone calls, "sawatdi" is supposed to be used, but at present most people say "hello" instead.
Marriage
The Thai-style wedding ceremony is still practised widely in Thailand. What have changed are the costumes of brides and grooms. Western wedding gowns and suits are very popular in wedding banquets nowadays. However, during the merit making ritual which is held in the day time, the couples prefer traditional Thai costumes which are suitable for the atmosphere.
Abstract Aspects