Transliteration of Thai
A correspondence table between the Thai script and Latin letters: 63 letters, with names and sounds. The rendering is practical — it exists so you can read aloud and be understood, not to meet a scholarly standard.
Thai character → Latin
| Character | Name | In Latin | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| ก | ko kai (chicken) | k, no puff of air | Middle class. The k of "ski" — no puff of air after it; at the end of a syllable the k closes without release |
| จ | cho chan (plate) | ch, no puff of air | Middle class. The ch of "church", tighter and further forward, without the puff of air; leans slightly toward a soft j |
| ฎ | do chada (crown) | d (spare, Pali loans) | Middle class. Sounds exactly like ด; it exists to spell Pali and Sanskrit loanwords faithfully |
| ฏ | to patak (spear) | t (spare, Pali loans) | Middle class. Sounds exactly like ต; a spelling mark for Pali and Sanskrit loanwords |
| ด | do dek (child) | d (final t) | Middle class. A plain d at the start of a word; word-finally it closes as an unreleased t |
| ต | to tao (turtle) | t, no puff of air | Middle class. The t of "stop", with the tongue on the teeth rather than the ridge |
| บ | bo baimai (leaf) | b (final p) | Middle class. A plain b at the start of a word; at the end it closes as an unreleased p |
| ป | po pla (fish) | p, no puff of air | Middle class. The p of "spin": lips closed, no puff of air — not the aspirated p of "pin" |
| อ | o ang (basin) | glottal stop; vowel carrier | Middle class. As a consonant it is the tiny catch in the throat before a vowel, the one in "uh-oh"; its main job is different — to carry a vowel when a syllable starts with one |
| ข | kho khai (egg) | kh (aspirated k) | High class. A k with a distinct puff of air, like the k in "kit" said with an audible breath |
| ฃ | kho khuat (bottle) | kh (obsolete, as ข) | High class. Sounds like ข; the letter was retired from use long ago and survives in old texts |
| ฉ | cho ching (curtain) | ch (aspirated) | High class. A ch with a distinct puff of air |
| ฐ | tho than (base) | th (spare, Pali loans) | High class. The aspirated t of ถ; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| ถ | tho thung (bag) | th (aspirated t) | High class. A t with a clear puff of air — the tongue stays behind the teeth, never between them, so no English "th" sound |
| ผ | pho phueng (bee) | ph (aspirated p) | High class. A p with a clear puff of air, never an f — the h here is the breath, not a letter value |
| ฝ | fo fa (lid) | f (high class) | High class. The f of English |
| ศ | so sala (pavilion) | s (spare, Pali loans) | High class. Sounds like ส; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| ษ | so ruesi (hermit) | s (rare, Sanskrit) | High class. Sounds like ส; found in a handful of words, most of them about hermits and Sanskrit lore |
| ส | so suea (tiger) | s (the common one) | High class. An ordinary s; of the three s-letters this is the one native words are spelled with |
| ห | ho hip (chest) | h (silent class shifter) | High class. A light breath of h; in front of another consonant it goes silent and only lifts the pair into the high class |
| ค | kho khwai (buffalo) | kh (low class) | Low class. Sounds like ข; between vowels it drifts toward a g, which is why transliterations waver |
| ฅ | kho khon (person) | kh (obsolete, as ค) | Low class. Sounds like ค; retired from use, lives on in old texts |
| ฆ | kho rakhang (bell) | kh (spare, Pali loans) | Low class. Sounds like ค; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| ช | cho chang (elephant) | ch (low class) | Low class. A ch with a puff of air, nearly identical to ฉ by ear — the syllable's tone is what tells them apart |
| ซ | so so (chain) | s (the only low one) | Low class. An ordinary s — the only low-class s-letter alive |
| ฌ | cho choe (tree) | ch (spare, Pali loans) | Low class. Sounds like ช; a Pali-Sanskrit letter that almost never appears in live words |
| ฑ | tho monto (Montho) | th (low class, spare) | Low class. The aspirated t of ท; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| ฒ | tho phuthao (old man) | th (rare, as ท) | Low class. Sounds like ท; lives in a small set of words about elders |
| ท | tho thahan (soldier) | th (the common one) | Low class. A t with a clear puff of air, tongue behind the teeth; the most frequent th of the language |
| ธ | tho thong (flag) | th (Pali loans) | Low class. Sounds like ท; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| พ | pho phan (tray) | ph (low class) | Low class. A p with a puff of air; between vowels it drifts toward a b |
| ฟ | fo fan (tooth) | f (low class) | Low class. The f of English; the class, not the sound, separates it from ฝ |
| ภ | pho samphao (junk boat) | ph (spare, Pali loans) | Low class. Sounds like พ; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| ง | ngo ngu (snake) | ng at the start of a word | Low class. The ng of "singer", but word-initially — a position English never allows it |
| ญ | yo ying (woman) | y (final n) | Low class. A y; at the end of a syllable it reads as n |
| ณ | no nen (novice) | n (spare, Pali loans) | Low class. Sounds like น; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| น | no nu (mouse) | n (the common one) | Low class. An ordinary n; of the two live n-letters this is the one native words use |
| ม | mo ma (horse) | m | Low class. An ordinary m |
| ย | yo yak (giant) | y (the common one) | Low class. A y; at the end of a syllable it glides like the y of "stay" |
| ร | ro ruea (boat) | r (final n) | Low class. A tapped r; casual Bangkok speech often drops it or turns it into an l. At the end of a syllable it reads n: อาหาร is ahaan |
| ล | lo ling (monkey) | l (final n) | Low class. An l; at the end of a syllable it reads n, exactly like ร |
| ว | wo waen (ring) | w (final o/u) | Low class. A w; at the end of a syllable it shrinks to a quick o or u: khao, not khaw |
| ฬ | lo chula (kite) | l (spare, Pali loans) | Low class. Sounds like ล; kept for Pali and Sanskrit spellings |
| ฮ | ho nokhuk (owl) | h (a real h) | Low class. A full breathy h with audible friction; unlike ห it never goes silent |
| เ | sara e | short e (written before) | A short e as in "bed"; the sign stands BEFORE the consonant though it is read after it: เขา is khao, not e-khao |
| แ | sara ae | long ae (written before) | A long open e, held twice as long as sara e; it also sits in front of the consonant |
| โ | sara o | o (written before) | The o of "go", held steady; written in front of the consonant |
| ใ | sara ai maimuan | ai (in twenty words) | The diphthong ai of "eye"; this sign is used in exactly twenty words — Thai schoolchildren memorize the list, and for a start it is enough to recognize the sign |
| ไ | sara ai maimalai | ai (everywhere else) | The same diphthong ai; every ai-word outside the twenty-word list is written with this sign |
| า | sara au | au, wrapping the consonant | The diphthong au as in "cloud"; it hugs the consonant from both sides — เ + ข + า = เขา, khao |
| ะ | sara a | short a | A quick a as in "cut" but cleaner; the shortness makes the syllable dead, which changes the tone |
| า | sara aa | long aa | A long a, twice the length of sara a — the single most frequent sign of Thai text, a straight stick to the right of the consonant |
| ิ | sara i | short i (above) | A quick i as in "bit"; written ABOVE the consonant |
| ี | sara ii | long ii (above) | A long i, the same stick as sara i but with a curl at the top |
| ึ | sara ue | short ue (above) | A short sound between i and u, said with spread lips and the tongue pushed forward — English has nothing like it; written above the consonant |
| ื | sara uee | long ue (above) | The long partner of sara ue; it coils into a spiral above the consonant |
| ุ | sara u | short u (below) | A quick u as in "put"; written BELOW the consonant |
| ู | sara uu | long uu (below) | A long u as in "food"; also under the consonant, with a small leg |
| ำ | sara am | am in one sign | A whole syllable "am" in one sign: a small circle above the a; it always ends in m, so the syllable stays live |
| ฤ | ro rue | rue = r + vowel | A consonant and a vowel in one sign, from Sanskrit; lives in words like rue du, "season" |
| ฤๅ | ro ruea (long) | long ruue | The long partner of ฤ |
| ฦ | lo lue | lue = l + vowel (table only) | A Sanskrit sign that virtually never appears in live words; the tables keep it for completeness |
| ฦๅ | lo luea (long) | long luue (table only) | The long partner of ฦ; rarer still |
| ่ | mai ek | low tone | One stroke. On a middle- or high-class consonant it gives the low tone; on a low-class one, the falling tone |
| ้ | mai tho | falling tone | Two strokes. On a middle- or high-class consonant the falling tone; on a low-class one, the high tone |
| ๊ | mai tri | high tone | Three strokes. Placed only on the middle class: a high tone can be written with it there and nowhere else |
| ๋ | mai chattawa | rising tone | A little hook. On the middle class it gives the rising tone; on the low class, rarely, the same |
How practical transliteration differs from the scholarly kind
Any script has several Latin renderings, and they solve different problems. The scholarly one (ISO, GOST) is reversible: the original spelling can be restored character for character — which is why it is full of marks that are not on any keyboard and that nobody ever reads aloud correctly.
The practical one solves the reverse problem: a person reads it aloud and is understood. That is what the table above uses, and that is what our courses use.
What to watch out for
Middle class — nine consonants. อักษรกลาง. Reading starts from these nine. A live syllable with no tone mark takes the even mid tone; a dead one takes the low tone. They are also the only class that regularly takes the three-stroke mark ๊ and the rising hook ๋.
High class — eleven consonants. อักษรสูง. A live syllable with no mark reads rising, a dead one reads low. The silent letter ห lives here. In front of another consonant it makes no sound of its own, but it lifts the pair into the high class.
Low class: stops and aspirates. The first half of อักษรต่ำ: the kh, ch, th, ph, f, s letters. They sound just like their high-class twins; the difference is in the tone. A live syllable with no mark reads mid here, not rising. A dead one reads high after a short vowel and falling after a long one.
Low class: nasals and sonorants. The second half of อักษรต่ำ: n, m, y, r, l, w, ng. They close a syllable "alive", so a syllable ending in one of them needs no tone mark to be live. One class holds both lists; the split is for the table, not for grammar.
Vowels written before the consonant. The sign stands to the LEFT of the consonant, but the sound comes after it. So เ + ข + า makes เขา, read khao. This is the first habit to build. ใ and ไ are one sound, ai, in two signs: "the one in twenty words" and "all the rest".
Vowel marks around the letter. Shown on the carrier อ, as in a Thai classroom: by itself a vowel mark is not readable. Short and long pairs (ะ/า, ิ/ี, ึ/ื, ุ/ู) carry meaning as firmly as ship and sheep. They also decide whether the syllable is live. A short vowel with nothing after it makes the syllable dead, and that changes the tone.
Sanskrit vowels. ฤ ฤๅ ฦ ฦๅ — a consonant and a vowel packed into one sign. The first two live on in the words for "season" and "hermit". The last two only keep their place in the table, as on Thai school posters.
Tone marks. Four signs, shown on อ. One rule for all: a mark does not name a tone — it RECOMPUTES the tone from the consonant class. The same single stroke gives a low tone on ข and a falling tone on ค. The marks ๊ and ๋ are never placed on the high or low class at all, and that is part of the rule too.
Frequently asked
How to write Thai text in Latin letters?
Using the table above, character by character. The practical rendering records sound, not spelling, so the original text cannot always be restored from it backwards.
Why do transliterations differ across sources?
Because they solve different problems: the scholarly one is reversible and precise, the practical one is readable, the passport one is fixed by the country's rules. They are not required to agree.