The launch of Nick Nostitz’s fantastic new book will be held on Wednesday 15 July (8 PM) at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand. Full details are available here. The informative and entertaining Chris Baker will be there for a Q&A.
Go along and buy a copy (or two)!
5 responses so far ↓
1 jonfernquest // Jul 14, 2009 at 10:09 pm
Anyone know what the original Thai language phrase was that the English translation “brothel of treacherous criminals” came from?Just curious.
2 siam middlepath // Jul 15, 2009 at 1:02 am
I haven’t seen the Thai version but I’d guess it’s a bad translation of the following:
แหล่งซ่องสุมของอาชญากรทรยศ/ขายชาติ
My English is far from perfect but I wouldn’t use the word ‘brothel’, instead i might have used something like… ‘ an association of a pack of treacherous criminals’..
3 Somsak Jeamteerasakul // Jul 15, 2009 at 11:44 am
Anyone know what the original Thai language phrase was that the English translation “brothel of treacherous criminals” came from?Just curious.
“ซ่องโจร”
The word is actually a legal technical term, a criminal offence. See article 210 of the Criminal Code:
มาตรา 210 ผู้ใดสมคมกันตั้งแต่ห้าคนขึ้นไปเพื่อทำความผิดอย่างหนึ่งอย่างใดตามที่บัญญัติไว้ในภาค ๒ นี้ และความผิดนั้นมีกำหนดโทษจำคุกอย่างสูงตั้งแต่หนึ่งปีขึ้นไป ผู้นั้นกระทำความผิดฐานเป็นซ่องโจร ต้องระวางโทษจำคุกไม่เกินห้าปี หรือปรับไม่เกินหนึ่งหมื่นบาท หรือทั้งจำทั้งปรับ
To translate it as “brothel..” is therefore misleading, I think. “ซ่อง” means “to gather” or “gathering” here (ซ่องสุม), i.e. “illegal gathering” (criminal gathering).
4 Andrew Walker // Jul 15, 2009 at 4:37 pm
I got the expression from here: http://www.prachatai.com/english/node/1296
5 jonfernquest // Jul 15, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Thanks so much. That was truly fascinating. Whets my appetite for more. The books explaining the Thai language to foreigners never seem to venture far beyond sentences like “Please give me one fried rice and a beer.”
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