Date and time notation in Thailand

Date

Thailand uses the Thai solar calendar as the official calendar, in which the calendar's epochal date (Year zero) was the year in which the Buddha attained parinibbāna. This places the current year at 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar. The year AD is indicated as BE in Thailand. Despite adopting ISO 8601, Thai official date is still written in D/M/YYYY formats, such as 30 January 2567 BE (2024 AD) or 30/1/2567. Anno Domini may be used in unofficial context, and is written in the same format (D/M/YYYY).

In full date format, the year is marked with "พ.ศ." (Buddhist Era) or "ค.ศ." (Anno Domini) to avoid confusion. As each calendar is 543 years apart, there is very little confusion in the contemporary context.

Day in thai

Day in a week (, ) according to the ISO 8601 international standard, Monday is designated as the first day of the week, while Sunday is considered as the last day. Meanwhile, in Thailand, Sunday was considered the start of the week, which ended on Saturday.

Month in thai

In Thai, the names of months can be categorized based on the number of days they contain. Months with 30 days typically end with the suffix th (-ยน), while those with 31 days end with th (-คม). An exception is February, which is designated with the suffix th (-พันธ์) and has either 28 or 29 days depending on whether it is a leap year, as determined by the solar leap year system, referred to as th (ปีอธิกสุรทิน).

Year in thai

The Thai calendar has evolved significantly throughout the nation's history, from their culture and tradition. Each era has been used to mark the passage of time, reflecting the historical and religious influences of the era.

Buddhist Era

The lunar calendar (, ) system is based on the cycles of the moon. A lunar month lasts about 291/2 days, and the year consists of 12 months with the occasional insertion of an extra month (13th month) to keep the lunar and solar years aligned. Each month is divided into two phases the waxing moon () and the waning moon ().

The traditional Thai lunar calendar follows the Buddhist Era (), which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar.

Important dates on the Thai calendar were often connected to Buddhism, such as Vesakha Puja (), which commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and passing of the Buddha. These holidays are determined by the lunar calendar.

Shaka era

Shaka era (, ) is widely used in historical evidence such as stone inscriptions and chronicles from both the Sukhothai and early Ayutthaya periods. Shaka era was established by King Kanishka of the Kushan dynasty, beginning after the Buddhist Era 622 (Shaka era corresponds to 622 CE).

Chula Sakarat

Chula Sakarat (, ) is an era influenced by Burma. The king of Pagan first started using it in Burma in 1182 CE and it spread to the Lan Na Kingdom starting after 1181 CE. Thais like to use Chula Sakarat in astrological calculations and to indicate the year in inscriptions, legends, records, and chronicles until the time of King Chulalongkorn when he announced its abolition and used Rattanakosin Era instead.

Rattanakosin Era

The Ratanakosin Era (RS, , ) was established on 1 April 1889 by Chulalongkorn, starting with the year Bangkok was declared as the capital as 1 RS. Thailand continued the Rattanakosin Era until 131 RS. It was announced to be canceled during the early reign of King Vajiravudh, eventually being turned into the Buddhist Era instead.

Gregorian year

The Buddhist calendar is widely used in Southeast Asian countries that follow the Theravada school of Buddhism, particularly in Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. In Thailand, it was formally adopted in 2455 BE (1912 AD), during the reign of Vajiravudh, replacing the Rattanakosin Era. Although it has been in use since the Ayutthaya period, it continues to be used today. The Buddhist Era (BE) starts one year after the Buddha's parinirvana, making the Buddhist calendar 543 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar.

Year calculation

• Buddhist Era = Anno Domini + 543
• Buddhist Era = Maha Sakarat + 621
• Buddhist Era = Chula Sakarat + 1181
• Buddhist Era = Rattanakosin Era + 2324

Thai numerals in Thai official document

Main article: Thai numerals

Thai numerals are commonly used in official government documents in Thailand for conserving Thai cultures and it is in a day month year format by day and year are written in Thai numerals and month is written in Thai. Additionally, in the official documents, year is written in the Buddhist era. For example, to write a full date format, 1 June 2013, in Thai government documents, ๑ มิถุนายน พ.ศ. ๒๕๕๖.

Colloquialism in Thailand

Date colloquialism in Thailand

The time points of days in the past, present, and future, which are found in the Thai language, are expressed using various words, including:

• Past:
  • "เมื่อวาน" () refers to yesterday or one day before today.
  • "เมื่อวานซืน" () refers to the day before yesterday or two days before today.
• Present:
  • "วันนี้" () refers to today.
• Future:
  • "พรุ่งนี้" () refers to tomorrow or one day after today.
  • "มะรืนนี้" () refers to the day after tomorrow or two days after today.
  • "มะเรื่อง" () refers to three days after today.

Month colloquialism

The time points of months in the past, present and future, which are found in Thai language, are expressed using many words, including:

• Past:
  • "เดือนที่ผ่านมา" () refers to previous month or last month.
  • "เดือนที่แล้ว" () refers to previous month or last month.
  • "เดือนก่อน" () refers to previous month or last month.
  • "เดือนที่แล้วมา" () refers to a month that came before the last month but does not specify an exact time frame.
• Present:
  • "เดือนนี้" () refers to this month.
• Future:
  • "เดือนหน้า" () refers to next month or one month after the current month.
  • "เดือนถัดไป" () refers to next month or one month after the current month.
  • "เดือนหน้านู้น" () or "เดือนหน้าหน้า" () refers to the month two months from now, two months after the current month or more.

Year colloquialism

The time points of years in the past, present and future, which are found in Thai language, are expressed using many words, including:

• Past:
  • "ปีก่อน" () refers to the year before last or one year before the current year.
  • "ปีที่แล้ว" () refers to the year before last or one year before the current year.
  • "ปีกลาย" () refers to more than one year before the current year, but it does not specify exactly how many years ago.
• Present:
  • "ปีนี้" () refers to this year.
• Future:
  • "ปีหน้า" () refers to next year or one year after the current year.
  • "ปีถัดไป" () refers to next year or one year after the current year.

Time

There are two systems of telling time in Thailand. Official time follows a 24-hour clock. The 24-hour clock is commonly used in military, aviation, navigation, meteorology, astronomy, computing, logistical, emergency services, and hospital settings, where the ambiguities of the 12-hour clock cannot be tolerated.

In the second, everyday usage, the day is divided into four six-hour periods. Additional words are used to identify the period specified (similar to a.m. or p.m. for a 12-hour system).

The distinguishing words are:

• 00:00-00:59 = เที่ยงคืน ()
• 01:00-05:59 = ตี ()
• 06:00-11:59 = โมงเช้า ()
• 12:00-12:59 = เที่ยง ()
• 13:00-15:59 = บ่ายโมง ()
• 16:00-18:59 = โมงเย็น ()
• 19:00-23:59 = ทุ่ม ()

Thailand is in the UTC+07:00 time zone, which is also known as Indochina Time (ICT) and military time zone Golf.

Thai six-hour clock

Main article: Thai six-hour clock

The Thai six-hour clock divides the day into four distinct 6-hour periods and reflects traditional Thai customs. While modern Thailand primarily uses the 24-hour clock for official purposes, this system remains a cultural heritage from earlier Thai norms. It is still occasionally used in informal settings, especially in rural areas and casual conversation.

Notation of the Thai time system:

• The first six-hour period (01:00–06:00) is expressed using the numbers 1 through 6, followed by the phrase "ตี" (th).
• The second six-hour period (07:00–12:59) is expressed using the numbers 1 through 6, followed by the phrase "โมงเช้า" (th).
• The third six-hour period (13:00–18:59) is expressed using the numbers 1 through 6, followed by the phrase "บ่าย" (th) or "โมงเย็น" (th).
• The fourth six-hour period (19:00–00:59) is expressed using the numbers 1 through 6, followed by the phrase "ทุ่ม" (th).

The terms th and th originate from the sounds produced by traditional Thai instruments: the gong and the drum, respectively. These sounds were historically used as signals to mark the passage of time. th represents the sound of the gong, associated with signaling the day, while th represents the sound of the drum, used to signify the night. This system of timekeeping was formalized during the reign of King Mongkut.

Thai 24-hour clock

The 24-hour clock in Thai is used similarly to the international system, especially in formal contexts like transportation, news, military, and government. By expressing 00:00-23:59, followed by the phase "นาฬิกา" ()

References

References

1. "Buddhist Calendar".
2. "มหาศักราช ( Shaka Era )".
3. "จุลศักราช".
4. "รัตนโกสินทร์ศก".
5. "การใช้เลขไทยในเอกสารราชการ".
6. มิ่งมิตร ศรีประสิทธิ์. (2019). "คำบอกเวลาในภาษาไทยถิ่นกลาง". วรรณวิทัศน์.
7. (2011). "Essential Thai". Orchid Press.
8. "Telling Time".
9. (2022-09-08). "Thai 6 Hour Clock Explained".
10. Cavanagh, Roy. (2009-03-04). "Telling the Time Thai Style".