RE: Thai Pali pronunciation / phonology?

> I would be interested both in any articles examining this
> from a purely linguistic perspective, and in any materials
> looking at historical changes over time.  It seems to me (as
> a purely unscientific observer) that quite a bit of the
> modern pronunciation is attributable to confusion over the
> script (i.e., the very different values that the same glyphs
> have in modern vernacular usage) --but I would be interested
> to know more.

Dear Friends,

This is my first post to the Pali Study group, so may I express my greetings
to everyone on this group.

Sorry, I don't have an answer to your question, I just thought it
interesting that in Northern Thailand there are hints of a more proper
pronounciation:

toh tahaan is often pronounced like doh dek, as it should be when used in
paali for "d"

poh paan is often pronounced like boh bai mai, as it should be when used in
the paali for "b"

I wonder if this shows an evolutionary decline?

> In case Thai subscribers to the list feel unfairly singled
> out: I read the other day that the Burmese tend to recite
> Pali "ss" as "th" for similar reasons --so this is hardly the
> only example of such confusion.

And in Cambodian "ee-aah" instead of "aa" in some places, for instance:

"adinnee-ahh dee-aah nee-aah" to say "adinnaadaanaa"

Best wishes,

Yuttadhammo