Lao Culture - Greetings (2023)

FAQs

What are the basic greetings in Lao? ›

Good luck – sok dee.

Satu. Put simply, satu is the Buddhist equivalent of “Amen”.

“Khop Jai” or “Khop Chai” means “thank you.” Want to get fancy? Both “Khop jai lai lai” and “Khop jai deu” mean thank you very much.

A handshake is universally accepted as a greeting, both formally and informally. An exchange of “hello” or “hi” is usually enough as a casual greeting among peers. Other cultures kiss each other on the cheek, once, twice or thrice together with a handshake or a brief hug.

2. SABAI DEE MAI? This is a phrase that is used to ask “How are you?” In casual situations, it can be a greeting similar to “What's up?” The response is easy.

3. Sabai dee mai (How are you?) If you want to ask someone how they're doing, just say “Sabai dee mai ka/ krup?” If someone asks you, you can respond by saying “Sabai dee ka/ krup,” which means “I'm fine, thank you.”

always, permanently, continually synonym ▲ Synonym: sikuzote.

This can be answered with any affirmative, kin lao – or, I have, is a great response.

(ma-derr) is a Laotian phrase that basically means “come eat! or “come thru!” It's an open invitation to our dinner table. Chef Jeff's favorite memories include gatherings with family, friends and a feast of Lao food.

What does Phet mean in Lao? ›

In Lao, “boua” means lotus and “phet” is diamond.

Both “Khop jai lai lai” and “Khop jai deu” mean thank you very much.

3 – Thank You in Thai: Khop Khun kha/khap

The Thai word for thank you is khop khun.

The Thai 'thank you' is actually made up of three words: The word “Thank you” is khop (low tone) khun (normal tone), followed by the polite word: Female: ขอบคุณค่ะ – kɔ̀ɔp-kun-kâ Male: ขอบคุณครับ – kɔ̀ɔp-kun-kráp.

Good Morning / Good Afternoon / Good Evening

The greetings change depending on the time of the day. For example, “Good morning” is generally used from 5:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. whereas “Good afternoon” time is from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. “Good evening” is often used after 6 p.m. or when the sun goes down.

Morning/Afternoon/Evening

The general greetings of “good morning”, “good afternoon”, vs “good evening” vary per the time on day. For example, “good morning” is used from 5:00 am to 12:00 pm, while “good afternoon” is used from 12:00 pm up until 6:00 pm, and “good evening” time is used after the sun goes down.

Don't pat people on the head, even if it is meant as a gesture of affection. The traditional greeting is called the "nop" or "wai," and if you can master it you will be considered very polite. You don't do it to waitresses or children. It is a sign of respect for your equals and social superiors.

Respect is shown by bowing and bringing the praying hands up to the bottom of the nose. For social leaders, such as an important community elder or a statesman, the praying hands should touch the eyebrows. Finally, for the head monks in the temple, the hands should be brought up to the top of the forehead.

What does Mai Pai Nai mean? ›

One example is the Thai phrase 'pai nai' which is a form of greeting used in everyday speech between Thai people. Saying 'pai nai' when you see someone you know on the street is just a social pleasantry along the lines of saying, 'how are you?,' 'how's it going? ' or 'what are you up to? '.

You're very pretty. Khun suay mak mak. You're cute.

If someone is kind to you and you want to let her/him know, in Thai you can simply say Khun Jai Dee Mak which means you are very kind.

A reply to thankfulness

Possible translations for "mai pen rai" can be: 'you are welcome', 'not at all', 'that's alright'.

If the person is working, the answer might be a short “Chai ka/khrub” with a slight frown to indicate mild discontent. Or, if they have a day off (Wan yuut”), they might smile (“Yim”) and say; “Wanee mai tam ngan khrup/ka”.

Translation: Kai Dai = God Brother (but not widely used nowadays because of the slang translation. the actual person would want to be known as 'Kai Sai Lo' = God Little Brother) Slang Translation: can be used loosely as 'homely' says above but also it is the person (of male gender identity) who has been raped.

Alternate names. They are also known as Lao Gao (Thai: ลาวเกา) or just plain Ga referencing the creaky, crow-like way of speaking peculiar to their dialect of Lao. Gao literally means scratchy, another attribute of the way Lao Ga speakers come across. Naturally, these terms are offensive.

Koi (Lao: ກ້ອຍ; Thai: ก้อย, Thai pronunciation: [kɔ̂j]) is a "salad" dish of the Lao people living in modern-day Laos and Isan, Thailand, consisting of raw meat denatured by acidity, usually from lime juice.

They decided to call it Savanh Thai Kitchen as they wanted to incorporate “Savanh", from Phounsavan name as it means “Heavenly” in Thai/Lao.

Lao people generally address others by titles and honorifics in formal/professional settings or when meeting someone for the first time. Titles are used with given names rather than with family names. People use the titles 'Thao' or 'Nai' for men (Mr.) and 'Nang' or 'Sao' for women (Mrs./Miss.)

What do you call a girl from Laos? ›

A common mistake is to call people from Laos 'Lao'. The correct term for people that live in Laos is 'Laotian'. The term 'indigenous peoples' is not used by the Laotian government. Instead, they refer to non-Lao people as 'ethnic minorities'.

At age 53, Mae (translate into "Mother" in Lao language) Phaivan has become an influential voice in her community and a key driver for nutritional behaviour change in rural Southern Laos.

Such terms often indicate closeness and endearment. For example, someone may refer to friends around the same age or younger than themselves as 'Xiao' (small), e.g. Xiao WANG. A person from an older generation may be called 'Lao' (old) – e.g. Lao WANG.

Mai ao literally means I (omitted) don't (mai) want (ao). This way is very polite and will be appreciated by Thai people.

Lai (simplified Chinese: 赖; traditional Chinese: 賴; pinyin: Lài) is a common Chinese surname that is pronounced similarly in both Mandarin and Hakka dialects. The meaning of the character used in the Lai (賴) surname is "depend on; trust in; rely on".

From Spanish, from Basque jai (“festival”) + alai (“merry”), coined by 19th century writer Serafín Baroja in order to replace the non-native name pilota. However, although jai alai is composed of Basque words, it is not the name actually used in Basque.

คุณชื่ออะไร (khun cheu ah-rai) – What is your name?

How to say “I love you” in Thai. The phrase 'I love you' when spoken by a male to a female is 'phom rak khun'. Spoken by a female to a male it is 'chan rak khun'. However, when speaking about love, these terms are quite formal or traditional and aren't always used.

For example, maybe if love is a bit too strong a word, you can say something a bit more subtle. I like you: Pom/Chan chob khun (ผม/ดิฉันชอบคุณ) There may be times when you are apart, and you want to let them know that you miss them. You can use this phrase: I miss you: Pom/Chan kid thueng khun (ผม/ดิฉันคิดถึงคุณ)

'สวัสดี คะ/ครับ' - 'Sawadee Ka/Krub' 🙏 is our greeting which basically means hello.

What are the verbal and non verbal greetings of Laos? ›

Lao people always keep smile during greetings. The standard Lao greeting is "Saibaideebor" means "how are you?" and the often response is "sabaidee". For men greeting men, this is usually done with both hands pressed together in a prayer in front of your body and accompanied with a slight bow or nod.

Lao Script

The most common way to say thank you in Lao is khob chai (ຂອບ​ໃຈ). However if you want to add politeness or formality, you must say khob chai including nop while putting your two hands together near the chest level.

Thank you. Kop chai. very much, a lot. Lai lai. Thank you very much.

สบายดี (sabaidee) can be literally translated as 'well comfortable'. The phrase is used to answer the question 'สบายดีไหม' (How are you?) in Thai. If you feel good, then you reply 'sabaidee khrap' (สบายดีครับ) for males or 'sabaidee ka' (สบายดีค่ะ) for females.

Koi (Lao: ກ້ອຍ; Thai: ก้อย, Thai pronunciation: [kɔ̂j]) is a "salad" dish of the Lao people living in modern-day Laos and Isan, Thailand, consisting of raw meat denatured by acidity, usually from lime juice.

In English, some common verbal greetings are: "Hello", "hi", and "hey" — General verbal greetings. The latter two are less formal.

And yes, the how are you in Thai is the greeting in Laos. And that is 'Sabai Dee'. This is an equivalent of Hello and works any time of the day.

Lao: Bo panang.

Tipping is not expected in Laos but a little spare change left at the end of a meal or taxi journey will be highly appreciated and will probably make a big difference to the worker's daily wage. 10% at the end of a meal and rounding up a taxi fare is a generous way of showing your thanks for good service.

Compare Soffa Laotian: ornamental name based on Lao sopha 'beautiful'; or perhaps from the personal name Sopha based on the same word. Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022.

What does Mader mean in Lao? ›

Ma Der! (ma-derr) is a Laotian phrase that basically means “come eat! or “come thru!” It's an open invitation to our dinner table. Chef Jeff's favorite memories include gatherings with family, friends and a feast of Lao food.