If you don’t know this, previously, Thailand was known as Siam, and the people were called Siamese. On June 23rd, 1939, Siam was officially renamed to Thailand, and it remains until today.
As history mingled, Siam and Tanah Melayu also relied on each other in terms of economy, politics and marriage. We’ve made a distinctive connection that is still well-kept today. And due to the country’s close relationship with Malaysia, there are many Siamese in our country. We welcome them and their culture with open arms, as Malaysia is well-known to be colourfully diverse.
The Thai language is very interesting and fun to hear, especially if you’re a fan of soap operas from the sawadikrab country. However, do you know there are many kinds of Siamese in Thailand and Malaysia?
Two of the most known Siamese people in Malaysia are from Kedah and Perlis. Therefore, are you curious to know the differences?
TikTok user known as Swen (@swenlim_richmondyeo) is a Siamese from Kedah and has uploaded an educational video to let you see the distinctions!
What’s the difference?
In the video, Phing (the one with the blue shirt) is a Siamese from Kelantan.
Both of them receive some questions, and they’ll say them with their slang. These are the questions:
- Have you eaten?
- Ignore them!
- Drive safely
- How old are you?
- Where do you work?
- Your village is small!
- How can this happen?
- It hurts!
From the video, we see that Swen is more energetic and loud, while Phing is soft and relaxed!
Siamese Kelantan is ‘cute’
According to Swen, she categorises Phing as cute. Perhaps the way Phing says it makes her sound soft and cute!
Something you should know about Malaysian Siamese
In a Facebook post, Abdul Barr shared this interesting fact.
In 2014, there were almost 70,000 people identified as “Siamese” who is also Malaysian. They usually live in the northern states of Peninsular Malaysia (Perlis, Kedah, Penang and Perak). It’s also neighbouring southern Thailand. The largest number is from Kedah (around 42,000), followed by Kelantan (around 28,000) and Perlis (around 8,000).
They live a similar lifestyle to Malaysian Malays. We couldn’t differentiate them until they speak their mother tongue. Additionally, some women also still dress according to their religion. Otherwise, they are identical to Malaysian Malays since they can also speak the local accent!
Many users are also saying the same thing!
According to Razi Sharif, Siamese Kedah’s slang is a bit rough as it’s similar to the way Malays in Kedah talk.
Fairuz Ar Rifin says that Siamese Kelantan is softer and similar to the Thai language in Thailand.
Another commenter, Anas Shuib, explains that Siamese Kelantan is a bit formal, while Siamese Kedah/Perlis is more informal and not the central slang. He also adds that his mother doesn’t understand Siamese Perlis’s slang.
Even though their slang is different, they share one thing: both are proud to speak the beautiful language!
Sources: TikTok @swenlim_richmondyeo, History Today