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The Journal of the Royal Institute of Thailand Volume III - 2011 71 Suwilai Premsrirat V. Redefining çThainessé: Embracing Diversity, Preserving Unity What can the society at large do to help the crisis situation? In Thailand, globalization and nationalism have contributed to the forced assimilation of diverse linguistic and cultural identities into the dominant culture. The concept of çThainessé was developed, defined and has been periodically adjusted to the changing society by notable Thai intellectuals since the 1950s. The main purpose has been to support and maintain the centralized political regime and the hierarchical social structure. This ideology has had a profound influence on the Thai way-of-thinking and ideology of Thai society and culture. The practice of çThainessé in its original senses which is mainly based on three things, the nation (™“μ‘ ) , the religio n (»“ π“), and the monarchy (æ√–¡À“°…— μ√‘ ¬å ) , normally refers to the Thai language which is the official/national language used to unify all people into one nation , with Buddhism as the religion of the majority, under the universal patronage of the Monarchy . To be a Thai is to speak Thai, to act or behave as a Thai, to be çgoodé like a Thai should, and to be educated and maintain oneûs socio-economic status according to Thai values. Traits such as a friendly smile by Thais, as çMai pen raié (not so serious) attitude and gentle, kind and generous demeanour are all considered, by Thais, as characteristic of çThainessé. Other cultural markers for çThainessé, which people are generally aware of are food, costume, dance, music and the ubiquitous çwaié, the Thai gesture for greeting and showing respect. Most people are happy and proud to identify themselves as Thai. These cultural markers together with a consciousness of belonging to the same group, exemplify Thai identity and are generally accepted. One positive aspect of çThainessé is that one is able to move up the social hierarchy and be accepted doing so in the process. However, perhaps more important to its original adherents is that it can unify people of different ethnicities, languages and cultures into a single nation. The use of the Thai language makes it possible for a common education curriculum to be promoted throughout the entire country. As a result, we can witness in Khmer-Thai areas, for example, Khmer elders who have joined the Revitalization Program, writing stories, songs, and poetry in Northern Khmer by using the Thai-based writing system. The identification of oneself as Thai, and the recognition and manifestation of Thai cultural markers, generally indicates an awareness and sense of possession of Thai identity. Not withstanding this, a young Patani Malay speaking man from Pattani may be happy and proud to be a Thai at a nation level, but at the same time prefer 54-75_mac9 5/3/12, 10:43 PM 71