Temple sign in Thai (upper) and Lanna (lower), Chiang Rai
The people of Northern Thailand speak their own dialect of Thai called Kham Meaung (or Kham Muang; คำเมือง), however standard Thai is widely understood. In addition, the hill tribes speak their own languages.
Here and there, especially at temples, you may spot signs written in a curious rounded script that looks more like Burmese than Thai. This is Lanna, the ancient script of the Lanna kingdom, and while very few people can read or write it anymore, it's still popular in ceremonial usage.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Northern Thailand
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Northern Thailand - updated Apr 2024
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Northern Thailand Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
