Note: This tool is built around the 5-tone Vientiane dialect of Lao. If you are looking for a similar guide with Isaan pronunciation, please go here.
Intro
I have a strong background in Thai. I’ve been going there on vacation every year for more than 20 years, and I normally stay two to three months. A year ago I decided to learn Isaan, since it’s the native language of many people I meet in Thailand. The resources were a bit lacking, so I made some of my own. Because Isaan is quite similar to Thai, I reached an intermediate level after just a couple months.
There are several Isaan dialects, and it turns out that they are all dialects of Lao, not Thai. So I thought it would be fun to learn the Lao script and do some travelling in Laos. At first I wasn’t interested in switching my pronunciation from Isaan Lao to Vientiane (Standard) Lao, because I was able to communicate quite well with Lao people using Isaan. But after learning Lao script for two months, and taking a three week vacation in Vientiane, I decided to switch over entirely.
One nice thing about Vientiane Lao is, even though it’s lacking in resources, it’s pronunciation is well established and documented, unlike Isaan dialects. This tool is specifically designed for Thai speakers who want to learn the Lao writing system, as well as Vientiane pronunciation. Enjoy!
Introduction to Tones
Like Thai, Lao is a tonal language, and the tones are different from Thai. There is a lot of audio in this guide, and you’ll often be asked to listen and repeat, so it makes sense to do a quick introduction to tones before we do anything else. Don’t worry about this being brief – we’ll cover tones thoroughly later on.
Similar to Thai, there are five Lao tones. Let’s take them one at a time, giving five examples of each. Click the audio button for the first one, listen and repeat. Try to imitate not only the consonant and vowel sounds, but also the tone. Do this several times until you feel comfortable with it. Do the same with the next four.
High tone – this is the same as Thai:
ເຈັດ
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seven
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ດັບ
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extinguish
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ສິບ
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ten
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ມາ
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come
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ເຮົາ
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us; we
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Rising tone – this is the same as Thai:
ປີ
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year
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ຈານ
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plate
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ໝາ
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dog
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ຂາ
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leg
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ໜູ
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mouse
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Low falling tone – this is the same as the Thai falling tone.
ເປີດ
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open
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ຈາກ
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from
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ໝາກ
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fruit
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ເຂົ້າ
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rice; enter
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ຫ້ອງ
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room
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High falling tone – this tone starts higher, and reaches a higher frequency than the low falling tone before it falls.
ເຈົ້າ
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you
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ອ້າຍ
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big brother
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ນ້ອຍ
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small
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ຊ້າງ
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elephant
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ຮອບ
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a round; cycle
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Mid tone – this tone is higher than the Thai mid tone, and it stays level, meaning it doesn’t fall.
ແຕ່
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but
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ບໍ່
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no; not
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ໃຫຍ່
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big
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ຄ່າ
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cost
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ຮັກ
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to love
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The above descriptions aren’t meant to be exact; I just wanted to give you a verbal description to go with the audio. Here is a graphical description:
a) Comparing high falling with low falling tone (low falling sounds the same as the Thai falling tone)
b) Comparing Lao and Thai mid tones
c) All five Lao tones
d) All five Lao and Thai tones in one graph
In summary, three of the five tones are the same as Thai; two of these are named the same (high and rising) and one is named differently (low falling in Lao is the same as falling in Thai). The remaining two tones are completely different. I haven’t yet explained which combination of factors triggers which tone. That will be covered later. Until then, don’t be concerned with the spelling of Lao words here; they are only for reference for the time being.
Consonants
Like Thai, the things that determine tone are Consonant Class, Live vs Dead, Vowel Length and Tone Mark. So when we learn consonants, we need to memorize not only how to write and pronounce them, but also what class they are in. Lao uses three consonant classes, just like Thai. We learn them in three groups to make it easier to remember class.
Mid Class Consonants
Unlike Thai, there are no ฎ or ฏ and there are two equivalents for ย, one being ຢ, which is mid class (the other one is ຍ, which is low class as expected). Some natives may pronounce initial consonant ຢ /ny/ (like the Spanish ñ) instead of just /y/, so you should be able to recognize this, but it’s optional whether you choose to pronounce it that way yourself.
Memorize 1
ກ
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ກໍ ໄກ່ ก chicken
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ຈ
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ຈໍ ຈອກ จ cup
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ດ
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ດໍ ເດັກ ด kid
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ຕ
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ຕໍ ຕາ ต eye
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ບ
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ບໍ ແບ້ บ goat
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ປ
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ປໍ ປາ ป fish
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ຢ
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ຢໍ ຢາ ย medicine
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ອ
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ອໍ ໂອ อ bowl
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How to Memorize
There are many ways to memorize letters, words and sentences. Here is the method I would use for memorizing Consonants. You can use this method, or a variation of it, anytime I ask you to memorize something in this guide.
1) Starting at the top of the list, click the audio and listen. Instead of just ກ(ก), you will hear the name of the consonant ກໍ ໄກ່. Listen and repeat several times. When repeating, make sure you not only pronounce the consonant and vowel sounds correctly, but also imitate the tones. Some Lao tones are different, so just do your best for the time being, and tones will be explained thoroughly later.
2) Click the image. On a piece of paper, draw the letter ກ as shown. Be sure to follow the direction arrows. While drawing, repeat the pronunciation ກໍ ໄກ່ over and over. If it helps, write it big the first time, and when you gain confidence, write it smaller and smaller until you can make them normal writing size. Write it at least 10 times while repeating the pronunciation.
3) Repeat steps 1) and 2) for the second, third and fourth consonants. Memorizing in groups of four is a sweet spot – there are enough items to work your active recall, but not too many to make the task too difficult. If the list of items isn’t divisible by four, make a judgement call.
4) Scroll to the top of the page, select the “Hide all English” button. Scroll back down to the list, look at ກ and try to pronounce it. Then click the audio to check your pronunciation. If your pronunciation is correct, go to the next consonant. If your pronunciation is wrong, listen and repeat several times before going to the next consonant. Do for all four consonants. If you fail any of them, go through all four again until you can do all of them correctly.
5) Scroll to the top of the page, select the “Hide all Lao” button. Everything should be hidden now. Scroll back down to the list and click the audio for the first hidden consonant. On a piece of paper, draw the letter while repeating the pronunciation. Click the image and check to see if you drew it correctly. If you did, move onto the next consonant. If you didn’t, write it out correctly a few more times while repeating the pronunciation, then move onto the next consonant. Do this for all four consonants. If you fail any of them, go through all four again until you can do all of them correctly.
6) Repeat steps 1) thru 5) for the next four consonants. Keep doing this in sets of four until you finish the whole table.
7) Repeat steps 4) thru 5) for the whole table every day until you can easily go through it in one pass with no errors.
High Class Consonants
Unlike Thai, there are no ฆ, ฒ, ณ, ธ. Somewhat like Thai, ຫ(ห) can be combined with six different low consonants, which makes them into high class consonants. There are no special names for these, and three of the six can optionally be written conjoined (ຫນ=ໜ, ຫມ=ໝ, ຫລ=ຫຼ), which is the more common form.
Memorize 2
ຂ
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ຂໍ ໄຂ່ ข egg
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ສ
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ສໍ ເສືອ ส tiger
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ຖ
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ຖໍ ຖົງ ถ bag
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ຜ
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ຜໍ ເຜິ້ງ ผ bee
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ຝ
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ຝໍ ຝົນ ฝ rain
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ຫ
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ຫໍ ຫ່ານ ห goose
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ຫງ
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ຫງໍ หง
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ຫຍ
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ຫຍໍ หญ
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ຫນ/ໜ
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ໜໍ หน
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ຫມ/ໝ
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ໝໍ หม
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ຫລ/ຫຼ
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ຫຼໍ หล
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ຫວ
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ຫວໍ หว
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Low Class Consonants
Unlike Thai, there are no ฃ, ฉ, ฐ, ศ, ษ, ฬ. As mentioned before, ຍ is the low class consonant form of ย, and the same /y/ vs /ny/ optional pronunciations exist. ຊ replaces ช and ซ, but it’s only pronounced as ซ. Note that ຣ is somewhat rare now – it replaces ร, but it’s pronounced as ล.
Memorize 3
ຄ
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ຄໍ ຄວາຍ ค buffalo
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ງ
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ງໍ ງົວ ง cow
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ຊ
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ຊໍ ຊ້າງ ช or ซ elephant
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ຍ
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ຍໍ ຍຸງ ญ mosquito
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ທ
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ທໍ ທຸງ ท flag
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ນ
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ນໍ ນົກ น bird
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ພ
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ພໍ ພູ พ mountain
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ຟ
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ຟໍ ໄຟ ฟ fire
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ມ
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ມໍ ແມວ ม cat
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ຣ
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ຣໍ ຣະຄັງ ร bell
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ລ
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ລໍ ລິງ ล or ร monkey
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ວ
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ວໍ ວີ ว fan
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ຮ
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ຮໍ ເຮືອນ ฮ house
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Vowels
Just like Thai, ອ(อ) is used as the consonant place holder.
Long Vowels
These are all classified as long vowels. Notice that, similar to Thai, there are a few that are normally pronounced a bit shorter, but still classified as long vowels for tone rule purposes.
Memorize 4 - Simple Long Vowels:
ອາ
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อา long vowel
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ອີ
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อี long vowel
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ອື
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อื long vowel
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ອູ
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อู long vowel
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ເອ
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เอ long vowel
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ແອ
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แอ long vowel
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ໂອ
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โอ long vowel
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ອໍ
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ออ long vowel
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ອຽ
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เอีย long vowel
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ໃອ
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ใอ long vowel / shorter
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ໄອ
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ไอ long vowel / shorter
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ອຳ
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อํา long vowel / sonorant / shorter
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Memorize 5 - Complex Long Vowels:
ເອີ
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เออ long vowel / complex
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ເອືອ
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เอือ long vowel / complex
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ອົວ
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อัว long vowel / complex
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ເອົາ
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เอา long vowel / complex / shorter
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ອາຍ
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อาย long vowel / complex
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ອຽວ
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เอียว long vowel / complex
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ເອຍ
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เอีย long vowel / complex
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ອາວ
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อาว long vowel / complex
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ອວຍ
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อวย long vowel / complex
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ເອືອຍ
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เอือย long vowel / complex
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ອອຍ
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อย long vowel / complex
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ໂອຍ
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โอย long vowel / complex
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ອຸຍ
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อุย long vowel / complex
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ອິວ
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อิว long vowel / complex
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ເອວ
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เอว long vowel / complex
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ແອວ
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แอว long vowel / complex
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ເອີຍ
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เอย long vowel / complex
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Like Thai, there are many composite long vowels. Notice that ເອີຍ corresponds to เอย, not เอีย as you might expect. Both ອຽ and ເອຍ correspond to เอีย.
Short Vowels
These are all classified as short vowels. Notice that both ອັຽ and ເອັຍ correspond to เอียะ.
Memorize 6
ອະ
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อะ short vowel
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ອິ
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อิ short vowel
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ອຶ
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อึ short vowel
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ອຸ
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อุ short vowel
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ເອະ
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เอะ short vowel
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ແອະ
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แอะ short vowel
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ໂອະ
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โอะ short vowel
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ເອາະ
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เอาะ short vowel / complex
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ເອິ
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เออะ short vowel / complex
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ອົວະ
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อัวะ short vowel / complex
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ເອັຍ
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เอียะ short vowel / complex
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ອັຽ
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เอียะ short vowel / complex
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ເອຶອ
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เอือะ short vowel / complex
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Note – There is no hidden short /a/ or /o/
In Thai, sometimes there is a hidden short /a/ or /o/ between consonants. In Lao, the vowel is always displayed. Consider:
ຖະໜົນ(ถนน)
The /a/ that is hidden in Thai is always displayed as ອະ, and the hidden /o/ is always displayed as ອົ.
Vowels that change form when there is a final consonant
Just like Thai, some vowels change form when there is a final consonant:
Numbers
Numbers are pretty similar to Thai.
Memorize 7
໐
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ສູນ 0
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໑
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ຫນຶ່ງ 1
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໒
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ສອງ 2
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໓
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ສາມ 3
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໔
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ສີ່ 4
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໕
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ຫ້າ 5
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໖
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ຫົກ 6
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໗
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ເຈັດ 7
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໘
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ແປດ 8
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໙
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ເກົ້າ 9
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Repetition Symbol
Also similar to Thai.
Memorize 8
ໆ
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repeat
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ໆລໆ
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ແລະອື່ນໆ etc.
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Live Syllables
Like Thai, live syllables are ones that end in long vowels or sonorant consonants. Here are the five sonorant consonants:
(ງ) ດວງ
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orb
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(ນ) ດິນ
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soil
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(ມ) ນຸ່ມ
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soft
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(ຍ) ສາຍ
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line
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(ວ) ສາວ
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girl
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And here are the three stop end consonants (ກ ດ ບ):
(ກ) ແປກ
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strange
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(ດ) ເປີດ
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open
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(ບ) ເກືອບ
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almost
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Tones
Here is the tone table for Vientiane Lao:
*Some older sources may say that Vientiane Lao is a six tone dialect. They claim that live, unmarked, middle class syllables have low tones. But it’s indisputable that these have rising tones, just like their high class counterparts. I read that one of the linguists who supports the five tone model speculated the low tone was just a matter of mislabeling.
There are two things that make the Lao tone table easier than Thai. First, there are only two tone marks, ່ (ໄມ້ເອກ) and ້ (ໄມ້ໂທ). There are no ๊ or ๋ tone marks. Second, tone marks are only applied to live syllables.
That being said, there are 15 squares, denoting 15 possible combinations to make the 5 tones, and only 2 of them, colored green above, match Thai. So it’s still quite a task internalizing which syllable gets which tone. But because you’ve already done this with Thai, it’s going to be easier. You’ve already got a feel for these 15 squares, you only need to change the outcome. Just reading this may not make it obvious how helpful it is, but when you begin reading syllables and trying to recall tones, you’ll see what I mean.
I think the best way to go about this is to first do the exercise below, and when you feel comfortable with it, start reading on a regular basis. Before I give you the exercise, here are 5 rules, one for each column in the table, that might help you. Memorizing these rules is optional, but I recommend at least reading them through once.
1) All syllables with tone mark ່ have a mid tone.
2) Live syllables have rising tones, except for low class, which has a high tone.
3) Syllables with tone mark ້ have high falling tones, except for high class, which has a low falling tone.
4) Dead long syllables have low falling tones, except for low class, which has a high falling tone.
5) Dead short syllables have high tones, except for low class, which has a mid tone.
Tone Exercise
Procedure:
1) Go to the top of the page, turn off the English and turn on the Lao.
2) Look at the first word and try to pronounce it with the correct tone, consonants and vowel. Check by clicking the audio. If you pronounced it correctly, move onto the next word. If not, repeat after the audio several times, check the English, then move onto the next word.
3) Do these in groups of four. If you get all four correct, move onto the next group. If you miss any of them, keep repeating the whole group until you get them all right, then move onto the next group.
4) Proceed until you’ve finished the whole list. Do this once or twice a day until you feel quite comfortable with it.
ສາມ
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rising (three)
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ຫຍັງ
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rising (what)
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ຕາ
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rising (eye)
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ເປັນ
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rising (to be)
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ງູ
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high (snake)
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ມັນ
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high (it)
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ສ່ວນ
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mid (part)
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ຫນຶ່ງ
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mid (one)
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ໄກ່
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mid (chicken)
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ຢູ່
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mid (to be (located))
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ທີ່
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mid (at)
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ຄູ່
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mid (pair)
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ນຸ່ມ
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mid (soft)
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ຂ້ອຍ
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low falling (I / me)
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ຫຼິ້ນ
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low falling (to play)
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ຕ້ອງ
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high falling (must / have to)
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ສົ້ມ
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low falling (sour)
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ຮ້ອນ
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high falling (hot)
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ນ້ຳ
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high falling (water)
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ຖືກ
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low falling (correct / cheap)
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ຂາດ
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low falling (lacking)
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ແປດ
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low falling (eight)
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ອີກ
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low falling (again)
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ໂລກ
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high falling (world)
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ຮູບ
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high falling (image / picture)
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ຜັກ
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high (vegetable)
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ໝົດ
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high (all / finished)
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ປິດ
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high (to close)
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ໂຕະ
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high (table)
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ວັດ
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mid (temple)
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ລະ
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mid (and / then)
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Congratulations for finishing the guide! You have covered the writing system thoroughly, but you aren’t done with pronunciation yet. This guide taught you individual sounds and pronunciation of syllables. Now it’s time to cover sentence level pronunciation in the next guide.