The Thai way of expressing the time can be confusing for Westerners who are used to a 12-hour clock divided between am and pm. That’s because the time system commonly used in Thailand is the 6-hour clock. And just to make it even more confusing for newcomers, there is also a 12-hour clock and a 24-hour clock (the latter used by government agencies and for train/bus times), but it is the 6-hour clock which is widely used in every day speech. It’s worth noting the differences because when a Thai person speaking in English tells you 2 o’clock they might mean ‘2 o’clock in the afternoon’ or they might mean ‘sawng thum’ (which translates as ‘2 o’clock in the evening’) i.e. 8 pm! Therefore, it’s always wise to clarify. To see how this confusion arises, visitors need to appreciate the Thai system of telling the time. I found this system very confusing for a long time and would continually get muddled up with the times when speaking Thai, so the confusion can cut both ways.
Traditionally, Thai people divide the 24 hours of a day into four sections of 6 hours. Each section is given a classifying word to determine what part of the day it belongs to with midnight and midday having their own words just as they do in English. In the times given below you will see that the word chao equates to morning and the word bai means afternoon. The words used between dusk and dawn are dtii and thum. This is derived from when night watchmen would beat out the time every hour from dusk to dawn using sticks or iron bars (dtii literally means beat or hit).
Midnight – thiang kheun
1am – dtii neung
2am – dtii sawng
3am – dtii saam
4am – dtii sii
5am – dtii haa
6am – hok mohng chao
7am – jet mohng chao
8am – paet mohng chao
9am – gao mohng chao
10am – sip mohng chao
11am – sip-et mohng chao
12.00 (midday) – thiang
1pm – bai mohng
2pm – bai sawng mohng
3pm – bai saam mohng
4pm – bai sii mohng
5pm – bai haa mohng
6pm – hok mohng yen
7pm – neung thum
8pm – sawng thum
9pm – saam thum
10pm – sii thum
11 pm – haa thum
One useful word to memorize is kreung, which means half. For example, 7.30pm is neung thum kreung.
If you find yourself getting confused with the 6-hour clock but you know the Thai numbers between 1 and 24, you can always fall back on the 24-hour clock which is used by government offices and at train and bus stations. Just add the word naa-li-gaa (literally; clock/watch) after the number.
01.00 – neung naa-li-gaa
09.00 – gao naa-li-gaa
12.00 (midday) – sip-sawng naa-li-gaa
13.00 – sip-saam naa-li-gaa
18.00 – sip-paet naa-li-gaa
00.00 (midnight) – yii-sip-sii naa-li-gaa
There is a stereotype of Thai people that suggests they don’t worry about time-keeping or being punctual. Everything is done in Thai time. After all, what’s the point in rushing around and getting all hot and bothered? There are definitely times when the laid-back Thai approach conforms to this image and arriving late is almost expected. However, don’t bank on it all the time. Remember, T.I.T. – This is Thailand. Expect the unexpected, go with the flow, be prepared for all eventualities and try and remain jai yen.
