| Isan | |
|---|---|
| ภาษาอีสาน phasa isan, ภาษาลาว | |
| Spoken in | Thailand |
| Region | Isan |
| Native speakers | 20 million (2004)[1] |
| Language family |
Tai–Kadai
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | tts |
Isan language (Thai: ภาษาอีสาน, RTGS: phasa isan, [pʰaːsǎː ʔiːsǎːn]) is the collective name for the dialects of the Lao language as they are spoken in Thailand. It is spoken by approximately 20 million people, which is nearly one-third of the entire population of Thailand,[1] predominantly in the Isan region of northeastern Thailand. There are also large numbers of speakers, migrant workers, in Bangkok. It serves as the primary lingua franca of the Isan region, used as a communication medium amongst native speakers and second language speakers amongst various other minority groups, such as the Northern Khmer. There are more speakers of Lao (Isan) in Thailand than in Laos.
Although the Lao language is vibrant in Thailand, spoken as the main language in 88% of speakers’ households, the language suffers from a lack of alphabet, reduced transmission, and absence in media, official events, and education.[2] The language is also heavily being influenced by Thai, as this is the principal language of writing, education, government, and most official situations and a second language for most speakers. Code-switching is common, depending on the context or situation. Adoption of Thai neologisms has also further differentiated Isan from standard Lao.[3]
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Isan belong to the Tai branch of the Tai–Kadai languages. It is often considered to be a Thai dialect, a Lao dialect, or a language in its own right. This has given Isan a wealth of other names including Thai Isan, Lao Isan, Lao, or Northeastern Thai. In general, speakers refer to the language either as Isan or Lao, although the term ‘Lao’ can be used pejoratively by Thai speakers or the preferred term by those who acknowledge the Lao roots. Although Lao and Thai are mutually intelligible to some extent, Isan is closer to standard Lao than it is to standard Thai.[4]
The Tai languages of Southeast Asia were introduced by migrations from southern China and northern Vietnam beginning three millennia ago. Evidence of these migrations are recorded in the legends of a possibly mythic king, Khun Borom whose descendants settled as far as Assam, central China, Hainan Island, and Southeast Asia, fleeing from population pressures, Han Chinese expansion, Mongol wars as well as searching suitable riparian areas for wet-rice cultivation.[5]
The forerunners of the modern Tai peoples of Thailand and Laos displaced the indigenous Austro-Asiatic and Negrito peoples and established their own kingdoms, with the Lao concentrated along the Mekong River Valley and the predecessors to the Siamese states settling along the Chao Phraya River Valley. The Lao kingdoms consolidated into the Kingdom of Lan Xang in 1354, and its territory included most of what is now Laos and the Isan region, as well as Lannathai and some Chinese territory. The rival Siamese forced Lan Xang into serving as a vassal state. Pressures from Vietnam, Siam, China, and Angkor after a political crisis lead to a split into three kingdoms that were rapidly annexed by Siam. After this incorporation, the 18th and 19th century, the invading Siamese enslaved whole villages, conscripted others into corvée labour, or forced the population to relocate into Isan from the more prosperous eastern shores for the purpose of settling and developing the region. Competing French and British interests necessitated Siam be a buffer zone, but Siam lost huge territorial concessions to maintain its freedom, including Isan, which did not fully become Siamese territory until the 1904.[6] From this point on, the history of the Lao in Thailand and the Lao in Laos were divided.
The region remained a neglected, rural area. Thaification policies were undertaken to strip the Lao of their identity and connection with their colonized, and later Communist, brethren on the other shore of the Mekhong River, including the introduction of Thai-language schooling; mandatory use of Thai in written communication, government, business, and education; a name change of the region, its people and language from ‘Lao’ to ‘Isan’; banning publications in the Lao alphabet; as well as prejudice of the ‘foreigners’ by Central Thai. With the absence of Isan in most media outlets and formal spheres and high rates of bilingualism with Thai, the Lao languages have diverged significantly in recent years as Thai pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar have made inroads.[7]
Isan is primarily spoken in the 19 provinces that constitute Northeastern Thailand, a territory that is roughly the size of England and Wales combined. It is also spoken in large parts of Uttaradit and Phitsanulok provinces and parts of Eastern Thailand.[8][9]
There are small villages and pockets of Lao speakers in northern and central Thailand, a legacy of forced Lao settlement in these regions from the 18th and 19th centuries that have maintained Lao speech and culture. Although these small closely related groups may profess a Lao identity, they are not Isan because they are from outside the region. Due to internal and seasonal migration from Isan to Bangkok, there exists a large number of Lao speakers in Bangkok and other major Thai cities. It can also be safely assumed that a good portion of Thai citizens living abroad are also Isan speakers.[10]
Lao only enjoys official status in Laos. In Thailand, the local Lao dialects are officially viewed as a dialect of the Thai language, and the language is absent in most public and official domains. Despite these pressures of government policy to assimilate the people and language to the Thai nation state, Thai has failed to supplant Lao as the mother tongue for the majority of Isan households. Lao features of the language have been stabilised by the shared history and mythology, morlam folk music still sung in Lao, and a steady flow of Lao immigrants, day-labourers, traders, and growing cross-border trade.[11]
As the language is in a diglossic situation with standard Thai, dialects of the Lao language in Thailand share several features that set them apart from standard Lao, mainly the adoption of Thai neologisms, code-switching between Thai and Lao, and influences on grammar and tone distribution which make certain standard Lao words and manners of speaking seem very archaic or are just obsolete.[12] However, dialectal isoglosses mirror the population movements from modern-day Laos into the Isan region and can be matched to those in Laos.
| Dialect | Lao Provinces | Thai Provinces | |
| Vientiane Lao (ภาษาลาวเวียงจันทน์) | Vientiane, Vientiane Capital Prefecture, Bolikhamsai | Nong Bua Lamphu, Chaiyaphum, and parts of Nong Khai, Yasothorn, Khon Kaen, and Udon Thani. | |
| Northern Lao (ภาษาลาวเหนือ) | Luang Prabang, Sainyabuli, Oudomxay. | Loei and parts of Udon Thani and Khon Kaen.*1 | |
| Northeastern Lao/Tai Phuan (ภาษาลาวตะวันออกเฉียงเหนือ/ภาษาไทพวน) | Xiangkhoang and Houaphanh. | Parts of Sakon Nakhon, Udon Thani.*2 | |
| Central Lao (ภาษาลาวกลาง) | Savannakhet and Khammouan. | Mukdahan and parts of Sakon Nakhon and Nong Khai. | |
| Southern Lao (ภาษาลาวใต้) | Champasak, Salavan, Sekong, and Attapeu. | Ubon Ratchathani, Amnat Charoen, and parts of Yasothorn, Buriram, Si Sa Ket, Surin and Nakhon Ratchasima*3 | |
| Western Lao (ภาษาลาวตะวันตก) | *4 | Kalasin, Maha Sarakham, and Roi Et. |
Isan is currently written in the Thai alphabet, although this system is inadequate for representing two distinct phonemes used in Isan and the tones are not written according to Lao tonal rules. Secular writing was written using the Tai Noy script, ofwhich the modern Lao alphabet is a direct descendant. This script was widely used in Isan until 2414 BE (1871 AD), when the Thai government banned both the language and its script from schools and general writing. It remains to a limited extent in palm-leaf manuscripts preserved in Isan temple libraries, and can still be seen throughout the region on very old temple murals.[14] The Tai Noy script was the 'secular' script in use for records, stories, songs, poetry, and display. Religious literature was often written in a Mon-based script also used formerly for Kham Mueang. Secret codes, charms, and occult writing often used the old Khrom script, an older version of the Khmer alphabet.
Below are the lyrics to the song Duang Champa (ดวงจำปา,duaːŋ càmpàː) a famous song to all Lao speakers. One can see that both scripts are similar and that cognate words are spelt nearly the same.
(Thai rendering of Isan): เห็นสวนดอกไม้ บิดาปลูกไว้ ตั้งแต่ใดมา เวลา หงอยเหงา ยังช่วยบรรเทาให้หายโศกา
(Standard Lao of Laos): ເຫັນສວນດອກໄມ້ ບິດາປູກໄວ້ ຕັ້ງແຕ່ໃດມາ ເວລາ ຫງອຽເຫງົາ ຍັງຊ່ວຽບັນເທົາໃຫ້ຫາຽໂສກາ
(RTGS Romanisation): hen suan dokmai bida p(l)uk wai tang tae dai ma wela ngoy ngao yang chuai ban thao hai hai soka
The word 'pluk' is rendered with an l in Thai, but not in Lao.
Isan shares most of its phonology with Thai and Lao. It lacks the /r/ and /tɕʰ/ of Thai, but includes /v/ and /ɲ/ found in Lao. However, due to language contact with Thai, Thai pronunciation does creep into Isan speech.[15][16]
Simplification of consonant clusters
Isan is written in Thai, but consonant clusters are usually not pronounced.
Replacement of /r/ with /l/ or /h/
Isan pronounces and sometimes spells words etymologically containing ร /r/ as either ล (Lao ຣ or ລ) /l/ or ฮ (Lao: ຮ) /h/.
Replacement of /tɕʰ/ with /s/
Isan pronounces and spells words etymologically containing ช /tɕʰ/ as ซ /s/ and pronounces words with and ฌ /tɕʰ/ as ซ /s/ and ฉ /tɕʰ/ as if it were spelt with ส /s/.
Replacement of /j/ with /ɲ/
Words spelt with ญ and consonantal ย are pronounced as /ɲ/ if etymologically related to Lao ຍ. If words with ย are related etymologically to Lao letter ຢ, they retain the /j/ pronunciation.
Replacement of /w/ with /v/
It is very common for Isan speakers to pronounce ว as /v/.
Shortening of Diphthongs
Diphthongs that contain vocalic ว are often shortened.
Retention of certain historical Lao pronunciations
Although most words are shared between Thai, Isan, and Lao, problems in understanding can arise as tone is a phonemic feature in all three speech varieties. Standard Thai has five tones, although Lao dialects have anywhere from five to seven.[17][18][19] Due to regional variation, the word กา/ກາ crow (ka, kàː) is pronounced low-falling in Standard Lao and middle in Standard Thai, but one might also hear it pronounced with high, mid-rising, or low tone depending on the origin of the speaker. Even if the word is pronounced with a same tone, the pitch can be different. Tone in Thai determined by complex rules determined by consonant tone class, presence of tone markers, and vowel type. Since these rules are catering to Thai tonal patterns, they are deficient for representing Isan speech and their distinct tonal patterns.[20]
| Tone Class | Inherent Tone | ไม้เอก (อ่) | ไม้โท (อ้) | Long Vowell | Short Vowel | |
| High | Rising | Low | Falling | Low | Low | |
| Middle | Middle | Low | Falling | Low | Low | |
| Low | Middle | Falling | High | Middle | Falling |
| Tone Class | Inherent Tone | ไม้เอก (อ่) | ไม้โท (อ้) | Long Vowel | Short Vowel | |
| High | Rising | Mid | Low Falling | High | Low Falling | |
| Middle | Low | Mid | High Falling | Low Falling | High | |
| Low | High | Mid | High Falling | High-Falling | Mid |
Isan words are not inflected, declined, conjugated, making Isan, like Lao and Thai, an analytic language. Special particle words function in lieu of prefixes and suffixes to mark verb tense. The majority of Isan words are monosyllabic, but compound words and numerous other very common words exist that are not. Typologically, Isan is a subject–verb–object (SVO) language, although the subject is often dropped. Word order is an important feature of the language.
Although in formal situations, standard Thai is often used, formality is marked in Isan by polite particles attached to the end of statements, and use of formal pronouns. Compared to Thai, Isan sounds very formal as pronouns are used with greater frequency, which occurs in formal Thai, but is more direct and simple compared to Thai. The ending particles เดอ (doe, dɤː) or เด (de, deː) function much like ครับ (khrap, kʰráp), used by males, and คะ (kha, kʰaʔ), used by females, in Thai. (Isan speakers sometimes use the Thai particles in place of or after เดอ or เด.) Negative statements often end in ดอก (dok, dɔ̀ːk), which can also be followed by the particle เดอ and its variant.
Nouns are not marked for plurals, gender nor are they declined for cases, and do not require an indefinite nor definite article. Plurals are often indicated with the use of classifiers, words to mark the special classes that nouns belong to. For instance, หมา (mǎː, ma) 'dog' has the classifier โต (to, toː) which, as its meaning 'body' implies, includes all things with legs, such as people, animals, tables and chairs. 'Three dogs' would be rendered as หมา ๓ โต (ma sam to, mǎː sǎːm toː), literally 'dog three classifier'.
| Isan | Thai | Lao | Category | |
| คน (ฅน), kʰon | คน (ฅน), kʰōn | ຄົນ, kʰon | People in general, except clergy and royals. | |
| คัน, kʰan | คัน, kʰān | ຄັນ, kʰán | Vehicles, also used for spoons and forks in Thai. | |
| คู่, kʰuː | คู่, kʰûː | ຄູ່, kʰūː | Pairs of people, animals, socks, earrings, etc. | |
| ซบับ, saʔbap | ฉบับ, tɕʰaʔbàp | ສະບັບ, saʔbáp | Papers with texts, documents, newspapers, etc. | |
| โต, toː | ตัว, tūa | ໂຕ, tòː | Animals, shirts, letters; also tables and chairs (but not in Lao). | |
| กก, kok | ต้น, tôn | ກົກ, kók | Trees. ต้น (or Lao ຕົ້ນ) is used in all three for columns, stalks, and flowers. | |
| หน่วย, nuɛj | ฟอง, fɔ̄ːŋ | ໜ່ວຍ, nūɛj | Eggs, fruits, clouds. ผล (pʰǒn) used for fruits in Thai. |
Verbs are easily made into nouns by adding the prefixes ความ (khwam/kʰwaːm) and การ (kan/kːan) before verbs that express abstract actions and verbs that express physical actions, respectively. Adjectives and adverbs, which can function as complete predicates, only use ความ.
Pronouns Pronouns are often dropped in informal contexts, and are often replaced with nicknames or kinship terms, depending on the relation of the speaker to the person to whom is being spoken. Pronouns can also change depending on the register of speech, with many of the more formal pronouns borrowed from formal Thai speech registers. The more formal the language, the more likely that pronouns will not be dropped and that formal pronouns would be used. Pronouns can be pluralised by adding พวก (phuak, pʰuak) in front of the pronoun, e.g., พวกข่อย (phuak khoy/pʰuak kʰɔːj) is the same as เฮา (hao) or พวกเฮา (phuak hao/pʰuak haw). Age and status is important in determining usage. Younger boys and girls names are often prefixed with บัก (bak, bak) and อี (i, iː) respectively. Older males and females use อ้าย (ai, aːj) and เอี้อย (euay, ɯːaj) respectively instead. People who are much older may be politely addressed as aunt, uncle, mother, father, or even grandmother or grandfather depending on their age. Isan age-based name prefixes are often identical to or similar to vulgar, disparaging age-based name prefixes in Central Thai and should be avoided outside of Lao/Isan speaking regions in Thailand.
| Pronoun | Thai Royal/IPA | Thai Equivalent | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| ข้อย | khoy/kʰɔːj | ฉัน | I/me (informal, general) |
| ข้าน้อย | khanoy/kʰaːnɔːj | ผม (m.), ดิฉัน (f.) | I/me (formal) |
| เฮา | hao/haw | เรา | we/us |
| เจ้า | chao/tɕaw | คุณ | you (general) |
| ท่าน | than/tʰaːn | ท่าน | you (very formal) |
| เขา | khao/kʰaw | เขา | he/him/she/her (formal, general) |
| ขะเจ้า | khachao/kʰaʔ.tɕaw | พวกเขา | they |
| เพิ่น | phoen/pʰɤn | เขา | he/him/she/her (very formal) |
| มัน | man/man | มัน | it (very rude if used on a person) |
There is no general distinction between adjectives and adverbs, and words of this category serve both functions and can even modify each other. Duplication is used to indicate greater intensity. Only one word can be duplicated per phrase. Adjectives always come after the noun they modify; adverbs may come before or after the verb depending on the word. There is usually no copula to link a noun to an adjective.
Comparatives take the form "A X ก่วา B" (kwa, gwaː), A is more X than B. The superlative is expressed as "A X ที่สุด (thisut, tʰiːsut), A is most X.
Because adjectives or adverbs can be used as predicates, the particles that modify verbs are also used.
Verbs are not declined for voice, number, or tense. To indicate tenses, particles can be used, but it is also very common just to use words that indicate the time frame, such as พรุ่งนี้ (phung ni, pʰuŋ niː) tomorrow or มื้อวานนี้ (meu wan ni, mɯː vaːn niː) yesterday.
Negation: Negation is indicated by placing บ่ (bo, bɔː) before the word being negated.
Future tense: Future tense is indicated by placing the particles จะ (cha, tɕaʔ) or ซิ (si, siː) before the verb.
Past tense: Past tense is indicated by either placing ได้ (dai, daj) before the verb or แล้ว (laew, lɛːw) after the verb or even using both in tandem for emphasis. แล้ว is the more common one, and can be used to indicate completed actions or current actions of the immediate past. ได้ is often used with negative statements and never for present action.
Present progressive: To indicate an on-going action, กำลัง (kamlang, kam.laŋ) can be used before the verb or อยู่ (yu, juː) after the verb. These can also be combined for emphasis. In Isan and Lao, พวม (phuam, pʰuam) is often used instead of กำลัง.
The verb 'to be' can be expressed in many ways. In use as a copula, it is often dropped between nouns and adjectives. Compare English She is pretty and Isan สาวงาม (literally lady pretty). There are two copulas used in Isan, as in Lao, one for things relating to people, เป็น (pen, pen), and one for objects and animals, แม่น (maen, mɛːn).
Unlike English, which indicates questions by a rising tone, or Spanish, which changes the order of the sentences to achieve the same result, Isan uses question tag words. The use of question words makes use of the question mark (?) redundant in Isan.
General yes/no questions end in บ่ (same as บ่, 'no, not').
Other question words
Answers to questions usually just involve repetition of the verb and any nouns for clarification.
Words asked with a negative can be confusing and should be avoided. The response, even though without the negation, will still be negated due to the nature of the question.
The Tai languages of Thailand and Laos share a large corpus of cognate, native vocabulary. They also share many common words and neologisms that were derived from Sanskrit, Pali, Mon and Khmer and other indigenous inhabitants to Indochina. However, there are traits that distinguish Isan both from Thai and its Lao parent language.
Isan is clearly differentiated from Thai by its Lao intonation and vocabulary. However, Isan differs from Lao in that the former has more English and Chinese loanwords, via Thai, not to mention large amounts of Thai influence. The Laotian Lao adopted French and Vietnamese loanwords as a legacy of French Indochina. Other differences between Isan and Lao include terminology that reflect the social and political separation since 1893 as well as differences in neologisms created after this. These differences, and a few very small deviations for certain common words, do not, however, diminish nor erase the Lao characters of the language.
| English | Isan | Lao | Thai | English | Isan | Lao | Thai | |
| language | ภาษา, pʰáː sǎː | ພາສາ, pʰáː sǎː | ภาษา, pʰaː sǎː | city | เมือง, mɯ´ːaŋ | ເມືອງ, mɯ´ːaŋ | เมือง, mɯːaŋ | |
| religion | ศาสนา, sȁːt sáʔ nǎː | ສາສນາ, sȁːt sáʔ nǎː | ศาสนา sàːt sàʔ nǎː | government | รัฐบาล, lāt tʰáʔ bàːn | ຣັຖບາລ, rāt tʰáʔ bàːn | รัฐบาล, rát tʰàʔ baːn | |
| heaven | สวรรค์, sáʔ vǎn | ສວັຣຄ໌, sáʔ vǎn | สวรรค์, sàʔ wǎn | to be well | สบาย, sáʔ bàːj | ສະບາຽ, sáʔ bàːj | สบาย, sàʔ baːj | |
| child | เด็ก, dék | ເດັກ, dék | เด็ก, dèk | to be happy | ดีใจ dìː t͡ɕàːj | ດີໃຈ, dìː t͡ɕàːj | ดีใจ, di: tɕaːj | |
| street | ถนน, tʰáʔ nǒn | ຖນົນ, tʰáʔ nǒn | ถนน, tʰàʔ nǒn | sun | อาทิตย์, ʔaː tʰīt | ອາທິຕຍ໌, ʔaː tʰīt | อาทิตย์, ʔa: tʰít |
| English | Isan | Lao | Thai | English | Isan | Lao | Thai | |
| no, not | บ่, bɔː | ບໍ່, bɔː | ไม่, mâj | to speak | เว้า, vâw | ເວົ້າ, vâw | พูด, pʰûːt | |
| how much | ท่อใด, tʰɔ̄ː dàj | ທໍ່ໃດ, tʰɔ̄ː dàj | เท่าไหร่, tʰâw ràj | to do, to make | เฮ็ด, hēt* | ເຮັດ, hēt | ทำ, tʰam | |
| to learn | เฮียน, hían | ຮຽນ, hían | เรียน, rian | glass | จอก, t͡ʃɔ̏ːk | ຈອກ, t͡ʃɔ̏ːk | แก้ว, kɛ̂ːw | |
| yonder | พู้น, pʰûn | ພຸ້ນ, pʰûn | โน่น, nôːn | fruit | หมากไม้, mȁːk mâj | ໝາກໄມ້, mȁːk mâj | ผลไม้, pʰǒn láʔ máːj | |
| too much | โพด, pʰôːt | ໂພດ, pʰôːt | เกินไป, kɤn paj | to call | เอิ้น, ʔɤˆːn | ເອີ້ນ, ʔɤˆːn | เรียก, rîːak | |
| a little | หน่อยนึง, nɔ̄ːy nɯ¯ŋ | ໜ່ອຽນຶ່ງ, nɔ̄ːj nɯ¯ŋ | นิดหน่อย, nít nɔ`ːj | house, home | เฮือน, hɯ´ːan** | ເຮືອນ, hɯ´ːan | บ้าน, bâːn | |
| to lower | หลุด, lút | ຫຼຸດ (ຫລຸດ), lút | ลด, lót | sausage | ไส้อั่ว, sȁj ʔua | ໄສ້ອ່ົວ, sȁj ʔūa | ไส้กรอก, sâj krɔ̀ːk | |
| to walk | ย่าง, ɲāːŋ | ຍ່າງ, ɲāːŋ | เดิน, dɤːn | older child | ลูกกก, lûːk kók | ລູກກົກ, lûːk kók | ลูกคนโต, lûːk kʰon toː | |
| frangipani blossom | ดอกจำปา, dɔ̏ːk t͡ʃam paː | ດອກຈຳປາ, dɔ̏ːk t͡ʃam paː | ดอกลั่นทม, dɔ`ːk lân tʰom | tomato | หมากเล่น, mȁːk lēːn*** | ໝາກເລັ່ນ, mȁːk lēːn | มะเขือเทศ, mâʔ kʰɯ̌ːa tʰêːt | |
| much, many | หลาย, lǎːj | ຫຼາຍ, lǎːj | มาก, mâːk | father-in-law | พ่อเฒ่า, pʰɔ̄ː tʰȁw | ພໍ່ເຖົ້າ, pʰɔ̄ː tʰȁw | พ่อตา, pʰɔ̑ː taː | |
| to stop | เซา, sáw | ເຊົາ, sáw | หยุด, jùt | to like | มัก, māk | ມັກ, māk | ชอบ, tɕʰɔ̂ːp | |
| good luck | โซกดี, sôːk diː | ໂຊຄດີ, sôːk diː | โชคดี, tɕʰôːk diː | delicious | แซบ, sɛ̂ːp | ແຊບ, sɛ̂ːp | อร่อย, ʔàʔ rɔ`j | |
| fun | ม่วน, mūan | ມ່ວນ, mūan | สนุก, sàʔ nùk | really | อิหลี, ʔīː lǐː**** | ອີ່ຫຼີ, ʔīː lǐː | จริง, tɕiŋ | |
| elegant | โก้, kôː | ໂກ້, kôː | หรูหรา, rǔː rǎː | ox | งัว, ŋúaː | ງົວ, ŋúaː | วัว, wua |
| English | Isan | Lao | Thai | English | Isan | Lao | Thai | |
| ice | น้ำแข็ง, /nâm kʰɛ̌ːŋ/ | ນ້ຳກ້ອນ, /nâm kɔ̂ːn/* | น้ำแข็ง, /náːm kʰɛ̌ŋ/ | plain (adj.) | เปล่า, /paw/ | ລ້າ, /lâː/ | เปล่า, /plàːw/ | |
| necktie | เน็กไท, /nēk tʰáj/ | ກາຣະວັດ, /kaː rāʔ vát/** | เน็กไท, /nék tʰáj/ | province | จังหวัด, /t͡ʃàŋ vát/ | ແຂວງ, /kʰwɛ̌ːŋ/*** | จังหวัด, /tɕaŋ wàt/ | |
| wine | ไวน์, /váj/ | ແວງ /vɛ́ːŋ/**** | ไวน์, /waːj/ | noodle soup | ก๋วยเตี๋ยว, /kuǎj tǐaw/ | ເຝີ, fɤ̌ː***** | ก๋วยเตี๋ยว, /kuǎj tǐaw/ | |
| January | มกราคม, /mōk káʔ ráː kʰóm/ | ມັງກອນ, /máŋ kɔ̀ːn/ | มกราคม, /mók kàʔ raː kʰom/ | paper | กะดาษ, /káʔ dȁːt/ | ເຈັ້ຽ, /t͡ɕìa/ | กระดาษ, /kràʔ dàːt/ | |
| window | หน้าต่าง, /nȁː tāːŋ/ | ປ່ອງຢ້ຽມ, /pɔ̄ːŋ jîam/ | หน้าต่าง, /nâː tàːŋ/ | book | หนังสือ, /nǎŋ.sɨ̌ː/ | ປຶ້ມ, /pɨ̂m/ | หนังสือ, /nǎng.sɯ̌ː/ | |
| motorcycle | มอเตอร์ไซค์, /mɔ́ː tɤ̀ː sáj/ | ຣົຖຈັກ, /lōt t͡ʃák/ | มอเตอร์ไซค์, /mɔː tɤː saj/****** | butter | เนย, /nɤ´ːj/ | ເບີ, /bɤ`ː/******* | เนย, /nɤːj/ |
| English | Isan | Lao | Thai | English | Isan | Lao | Thai | |
| to work | เฮ็ดงาน, hēt ŋáːn | ເຮັດວຽກ hēt vîak* | ทำงาน, tʰam ŋaːn | papaya | บักหุ่ง, bák hūŋ | ໝາກຫຸ່ງ, mȁːk hūŋ | มะละกอ, màʔ làʔ kɔː | |
| fried beef | ทอดซี้น, tʰɔ̂ːt sîːn | ຂົ້ວຊີ້ນ, kʰȕa sîːn | เนื้อทอด, nɯ´ːa tʰɔ̂ːt | hundred | ร้อย, lɔ̂ːj | ຮ້ອຍ, hɔ̂ːj | ร้อย, rɔ́ːj | |
| barbecued pork | หมูปิ้ง, mǔː pîːŋ | ປີ້ງໝູ, pîːŋ mǔː | หมูย่าง, mǔː jâːŋ | ice cream | ไอติม, ʔaj tim | ກາແລ້ມ, kaː lɛ̂ːm | ไอศกรีม, ʔaj sàʔ kriːm |
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