Phatcharaphong Phubetpeerawat (also known as Tom) was born in 1987, from Nakhon Phanom, a small province in northeastern Thailand, about 145 km from Cha Lo border gate, Quang Binh province.
Tom’s great-grandfather was born in Vietnam and later moved to Thailand. So when the first Vietnamese language class opened in Nakhon Phanom province in 2002, 15-year-old Tom eagerly joined. With the support of his parents, Tom then decided to study Vietnamese at Mahasarakham University and graduated in March 2010. That same year, he flew to Vietnam to work as an employee at the Thai Embassy in Hanoi.
But when he came to Vietnam, Tom had to learn almost from scratch. Tom had difficulty distinguishing G/Gh, D/Gi because these sounds do not exist in Thai. Pronouncing Tr, S or words with question marks or falling marks correctly was also a challenge.
"Learning Vietnamese in Thailand is just learning the language in books," he said, citing that when he wanted to ask someone's name, the book taught: "Excuse me, what's your name?", but when he came to Vietnam, he didn't see anyone say "excuse me."
In August 2012, Tom decided to pursue a master's degree in Linguistics at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (Vietnam National University, Hanoi).
According to the Thai guy, one of the secrets to mastering Vietnamese is traveling and the support of Vietnamese friends. On special occasions such as April 30, May 1, National Day September 2 or Lunar New Year, Tom is often invited by Vietnamese friends to return to his hometown. Thanks to that, he has the opportunity to learn more about the culture of different regions in Vietnam.
After receiving his degree, Tom quit his job at the Embassy to return to his home country. Since the beginning of 2015, he has been a lecturer at the Language Institute, Nakhon Phanom University.
"My hometown has the largest Vietnamese community in Thailand, and Vietnamese is more popular than elsewhere. As the eldest son, I also want to return home to take care of my parents," he shared.
In 2017, Tom received a scholarship for Vietnamese language teachers in Thailand from the Vietnamese Government to study for a PhD in Comparative Linguistics, also at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities.
After 5 years, in June 2022, he defended his doctoral thesis on the topic "The Vietnamese phonetic system of overseas Vietnamese in Mukdahan province, Thailand".
In conclusion, the National University Council assessed that the thesis is topical, has scientific significance and especially practical significance. The thesis topic has never been specifically researched and does not overlap with any published work in or outside the country. The professors highly appreciated the level and linguistic knowledge of the Thai PhD student.
Phatcharaphong defended his doctoral thesis at Hanoi National University in June 2022. Photo: Provided by the character
Tom said that Vietnamese phonetics are interesting because people in each region pronounce differently and still keep that tone when going abroad. In his research, Tom discovered that Vietnamese people in Nakhon Phanom province still retain the aspirated /ph/ pronunciation of people in some provinces such as Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh. The Thai lecturer then created a phonetic map to determine the origin of the Vietnamese people here and explain why their pronunciation characteristics have changed.
Associate Professor Dr. Trinh Cam Lan, Head of the Department of Languages, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, highly appreciated the Thai man's ability to use Vietnamese and his ability to study and research linguistics. She said that Phatcharaphong always has a positive spirit and is open to learning and research.
"Phatcharaphong has a solid knowledge of linguistics and a special passion for research. In particular, he has a great love for the Vietnamese language and a burning desire to protect and preserve the Vietnamese language heritage for the community," said Dr. Lan.
Tom said that Nakhon Phanom University teaches Vietnamese and Chinese but has not yet established a major because there are not enough lecturers. After graduating with a doctorate, he was assigned by the university to work with three other colleagues to establish a Bachelor of Vietnamese major and is actively writing the training program.
"I hope that when the Vietnamese Bachelor's program opens, it will be of high quality and attract and train many students who love Vietnamese, especially Thai students in my hometown of Nakhon Phanom province," he said.
Author: Le Thu (vnexpress.net)
Article link: https://vnexpress.net/duong-tot-nghiep-tien-si-tai-viet-nam-cua-8x-thai-lan-4509416.html
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