Sawatdee ka,
In Chinese Astrology 2012 is the Year of the Dragon. The Year of the Dragon will start on 23 January 2012 and end on 09 February 2013. What kind of year will 2012 be? Many expect 2012 to bring about the end of the world. I have no idea myself, I only make the best out of each day.
Anyway, let’s talk about something I am sure I know, Thai language 🙂
Dragon a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. Dragon in Thai is มังกร [mang-gone].
There are two creatures in an old Thai legend , หิมพานต์ ‘Himmapan’ that have the head of a dragon.
1. สีหรามังกร Srihara Mungkorn: this mixed creature has the head of a dragon with the body of a lion. Its body is said to have dark brown in color.
2. ไกรสรจำแลง Kraisorn Jumlang : it has the head of a dragon and the body of regular Singh (Lion). Some artists prefer to call this creature “Kraisorn Mungkorn” which literally means a Dragon-Lion.
And there is a creature in a famous Thai literature พระอภัยมณี Pra apai manee. Every Thai student learn some parts of this story at school. This creature is called ม้านิลมังกร [mâa nin mang gone]. This mixed creature has the head of a dragon with the body of a horse, and the tail of a Naka (นาค)
Talking about a dragon, in real life we have ‘Dragon fruit‘. I was asked by my students many times about a fruit they never saw before until they came to Thailand. The peel is red pink with green soft spines, and inside flesh is clear white with soft black tiny seeds. The texture is like Kiwi, fresh and watery. It is called แก้วมังกร [gâew mang-gone]
I think the real animal that looks similar to a dragon is Sea horse. In Thai it is called ม้าน้ำ (mâa náam). Do you think so?
Thank you for reading my blog.
Mod
Hello,
I am 70 years old, married to my Thai wife for 42 years. We are visiting relatives in Bangkok. We are planning to live in Thailand for half the year in the coming years, so i want to learn more Thai, and I found your website today.
We went to the temple in Bang Na and I bought a Dragon.
After 2 days I experienced magic of the Dragon that I find hard to believe, but my wife also saw it.
Today I am going back to the Wat to get another Dragon as a companion for the first one. When I was searching online for information about Thai dragons I found your website. I will visit your website again soon.
Sawatdii ka Gary, I am happy to hear that you liked my website. Hope you come back to visit here regularly. 🙂
Also thank you for sharing your story about the magical dragon. That is amazing!