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Published on October 23, 2007

The institute recently published the first Thai slang dictionary, officially known as a dictionary of contemporary Thai, with 1,576 entries including widely-used words like "abbaew" - abnormal plus bongbaew (cute). There were 10,000 copies in the first print run.

The dictionary defines "abbaew" as pretending to appear innocent through body language and speech.

"For some entries, we also have background information on how the words came into use," said Kanchana Naksakul, chairperson of the committee that compiled the dictionary.

The Royal Institute came under attack for its decision to recognise slang words in a dictionary. However, it has fiercely defended its stance, reasoning that the dictionary is meant to list the words in alphabetical order so that people could conveniently use it as a reference.

It said failure to recognise slang words could leave Thais of future generations at a loss over language in use today.

"Words in the dictionary are not endorsed as standard language," Kanchana said yesterday.

She urged people to use appropriate words for each occasion, because talking to friends and talking to seniors required different language usage.

School teacher Saowalak Suntarotok said she was glad there was now a dictionary of teenagers' slang words for her to consult.

"This will keep me updated about the words teenagers use. I will then be able to teach my children about language use," she said.

 The Nation