Bachelor of Arts [B.A] [Thai] From School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

Thai is a member of the Tai family of languages which are dispersed over a wide area of Asia from northern Vietnam to northern India. It is the national language of Thailand and spoken by over 60 million people. Distinct dialects are spoken in the north, north-east and south of the country, but the language of the Central Region is regarded as the standard and is used both in schools and for official purposes throughout the country.Ê

The earliest surviving writings in Thai are stone inscriptions, dating back to the 13th century, which often record historical or religious events. By the end of the 18th century a refined court literature encompassing poetry and drama had begun to emerge, sometimes building upon indigenous traditions, sometimes adopting and adapting works of foreign origin.Ê

The introduction of printing, the emergence of a reading public as a result of the spread of education and contact with the west stimulated a demand for more reading material toward the end of the 19th century, and by the early 20th century prose fiction had begun to gain popular acceptance.

In addition, theÊThay and ...Êprogramme offered byÊSOAS University of LondonÊmay be combined with French; in this combination the European language portion of the degree is taught at University College London, to which initial applications should be directed. The general pattern is that the two-subject degrees are taken over four years, with the third year being spent on a programme of study in Thailand. However, students taking Thai and French spend their third year in France. There are also three-year versions of the degrees in Thai and a discipline which do not involve a year abroad.

Careers

As a graduate who specialised in Thai, you will have gained competency in language skills and intercultural awareness and understanding. Familiarity with the region will have been developed through a study of language in combination with literature, development studies, economics, geography, history, history of art and archaeology, law, linguistics, music, politics, social anthropology or religion.

Graduates leave SOAS not only with linguistic and cultural expertise, but also with a portfolio of widely transferable skills which employers seek in many professional and management careers, both in business and in the public sector. These include written and oral communication skills, attention to detail, analytical and problem-solving skills, and the ability to research, amass and order information from a variety of sources.