GinBoy2 Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 So as I'm sat here watching Ch 3 and the ludicrous 'English on Tour' segment I was struck by something I think I've seen all over my life in Asia. When she talks in English it's a couple of octaves lower than when she speaks in English versus when she switches to Thai. Looking back it was most obvious when I was living in Japan, but I've seen in in most asian countries I've lived in. Anybody else noticed this linguistic thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post CharlieH Posted May 26, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 26, 2020 Only thing I have noticed is the apparent increase in volume ! As if speaking louder somehow makes it any better ? ???? 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Lacessit Posted May 26, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 26, 2020 I tune out when women are talking together. My ears take enough of a beating when they are talking to me. 2 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post SteveK Posted May 26, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 26, 2020 I've noticed that my wife often speaks on the phone with her friends for 20-30 minutes at a time, and when I ask what they were talking about she has an uncanny ability to condense the entire, protracted conversation into a single word in English. 1 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnray Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 I haven't noticed it. Actually quite the opposite. The kids I teach scream in English in a high pitch American accent. And than they speak in Thai very soft and gentle to their parents. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkidlad Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 I haven't noticed it myself, but then I rarely watch any kind of cable TV. I did notice that with foreign movies dubbed in Thai the actors read with deep voices. It just sounds like someone with a normal voice putting on a deep voice. One other thing was presenting in English like a gameshow host. I was asked to critique my missus' nephew's English reading. I told them it was perfect but asked why he was presenting it like he was the host of a gameshow. The intonation was completely unnatural and weird. Missus said this is how the teacher told him to do it. Then I noticed this format was used a lot for other things here that are presented in English. None of them being actual gameshows. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samsensam Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 7 minutes ago, rkidlad said: I haven't noticed it myself, but then I rarely watch any kind of cable TV. I did notice that with foreign movies dubbed in Thai the actors read with deep voices. It just sounds like someone with a normal voice putting on a deep voice. One other thing was presenting in English like a gameshow host. I was asked to critique my missus' nephew's English reading. I told them it was perfect but asked why he was presenting it like he was the host of a gameshow. The intonation was completely unnatural and weird. Missus said this is how the teacher told him to do it. Then I noticed this format was used a lot for other things here that are presented in English. None of them being actual gameshows. years ago i dated a girl who did movie dubbing, she had a great voice, actually she had a great everything! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post BritManToo Posted May 26, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 26, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, GinBoy2 said: o as I'm sat here watching Ch 3 and the ludicrous 'English on Tour' segment I was struck by something I think I've seen all over my life in Asia. When she talks in English it's a couple of octaves lower than when she speaks in English versus when she switches to Thai. Looking back it was most obvious when I was living in Japan, but I've seen in in most asian countries I've lived in. Anybody else noticed this linguistic thing? Yeah, easy explanation, Thai is a tonal language, the Thai ladies reproduce the tone of the man they learnt English from. Works in reverse too, most white guys speak Thai with a girly high voice, because they learnt Thai from a woman. Edited May 26, 2020 by BritManToo 2 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Kwasaki Posted May 26, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 26, 2020 55 minutes ago, SteveK said: I've noticed that my wife often speaks on the phone with her friends for 20-30 minutes at a time, and when I ask what they were talking about she has an uncanny ability to condense the entire, protracted conversation into a single word in English. My mrs same " Nothing". ???? 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HashBrownHarry Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 1 hour ago, Lacessit said: I tune out when women are talking together. My ears take enough of a beating when they are talking to me. I lug in to what they're saying and 99.9999999999% of the time they're talking utter gash, ignorance is bliss. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramley Posted May 26, 2020 Share Posted May 26, 2020 3 hours ago, BritManToo said: Yeah, easy explanation, Thai is a tonal language, the Thai ladies reproduce the tone of the man they learnt English from. Works in reverse too, most white guys speak Thai with a girly high voice, because they learnt Thai from a woman. This is true. Native speakers of tonal languages learn to copy tones faithfully as babies. We don't hear tones because they are not a part of European languages. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigInBangkok Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 20 hours ago, rkidlad said: I haven't noticed it myself, but then I rarely watch any kind of cable TV. I did notice that with foreign movies dubbed in Thai the actors read with deep voices. It just sounds like someone with a normal voice putting on a deep voice. One other thing was presenting in English like a gameshow host. I was asked to critique my missus' nephew's English reading. I told them it was perfect but asked why he was presenting it like he was the host of a gameshow. The intonation was completely unnatural and weird. Missus said this is how the teacher told him to do it. Then I noticed this format was used a lot for other things here that are presented in English. None of them being actual gameshows. The wife speaks English decently most of the time. However, if she learns a new word, or speaks to someone she does'nt know, for some reason she does these weird over pronounced vocal acrobatics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rkidlad Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 37 minutes ago, CraigInBangkok said: The wife speaks English decently most of the time. However, if she learns a new word, or speaks to someone she does'nt know, for some reason she does these weird over pronounced vocal acrobatics. My missus speaks English with native-speakers and other foreigners with full confidence. Once she’s speaking English with other Thais abroad, etc, she seems to get nervous and alters her speech pattern. I feel there’s a sense of competition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HashBrownHarry Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 1 hour ago, rkidlad said: My missus speaks English with native-speakers and other foreigners with full confidence. Once she’s speaking English with other Thais abroad, etc, she seems to get nervous and alters her speech pattern. I feel there’s a sense of competition. Yes, i agree about when there's a group there's a sense of competition, something like a badge of honour the better they speak it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpyre Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 5 minutes ago, HashBrownHarry said: Yes, i agree about when there's a group there's a sense of competition, something like a badge of honour the better they speak it. This is true in most cultures...have you ever been around a group of French speaking English, for example? They all seem to defer to the most fluent individual, especially if chatting with an English native-speaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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