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Abstract
English has been taking its journey in Thailand for at least two centuries. Certainly, in different periods of time, it has played different roles, served different functions and has been used by different groups of people in Thai society. Its long existence in the country has had some influence on the use and attitudes of Thais. In addition, the current status of English as a dominant international language worldwide has a great impact on English usage in Thailand today. This paper describes the past events and the present situation, and closes with a discussion of the future of English in the country.
Notes
1. He might have learned some French from a French missionary, Bishop Pallegoix, from whom he learned Latin (Jumsai, Citation2000b; Wyatt, Citation2003). However, there was no record that he could master French.
2. Based on Kachru’s classification of English users into three concentric circles (Kachru, Citation2005), the inner circle includes English native speakers, the outer circle includes English speakers who use English as their second language and the expanding circle includes English speakers who use English as their foreign language.
3. Foreign teachers, either native or non-native speakers, are not present in every school. Usually, they are only found in the more expensive schools or the more popular government schools in the urban areas.