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Kham Ba Kao: 15 Lanna Proverbs from the Old Folk
Kham ba kao (Kham Mueang reading kam ba kao) are the old proverbs and teachings of the Lanna people: short sentences that elders use to teach the young about diligence, speech and kindness. Many of them make you smile, because they compare life to everyday things such as chillies, logs or smoke. This article gathers 15 kham ba kao, with the Lanna (Tai Tham) script, readings and meanings from the Moradok Lanna dictionary.
What are kham ba kao?
The name comes from two Lanna words: kham, which Khon Mueang (Northern Thai people) pronounce kam, meaning a word or saying, and ba kao (บ่าฯเกั่า), which the dictionary explains as "old, of former times, ancient", as in khon ba kao, people of old. Kham ba kao therefore means the words of the people of old.
In the Moradok Lanna dictionary these sayings carry the label สำ. (idiom), and many are explained as "an old proverb and teaching, which the people of the North call kam ba kao". Some are also compared with central Thai proverbs of similar meaning.
Sayings that teach diligence and care
| Saying | Lanna script | Meaning (from the dictionary) |
|---|---|---|
| ot phet kin wan | อ฿ดฯเผัดฯกินฯหวฯานฯ | endure the hot today to eat the sweet tomorrow: people who work hard and bear hardship will be comfortable later |
| phuea hu po wai | เผิ่อฯอรู้พํอฯวาฯยฯ | by the time you realise, it is already too late: a warning against putting things off with excuses such as too early, too late, too cold, too hot |
| fang dai bo di ao | ฟั่งฯได้บํดีอูฯา | work done in a hurry turns out badly and must be done again, wasting money, time and others' trust in your skill |
| tok nam hue po pia | ต฿กฯนํ้าฯหื้พํอฯเปยฯะ | if you fall in the water, get wet all over: whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly, so the work turns out well and is worth it |
| kin muea chai yang | กินฯเมิ่อฯอไจยังฯ | eat while the heart still wants to: enjoy life while the body is strong, because in old age even the finest food has no taste |
This group of sayings very often uses eating as its image. Ot phet kin wan is one of the most often heard. The dictionary says it matches the central Thai proverb ot priao wai kin wan ("forgo the sour to eat the sweet"); the only difference is that Lanna uses the hot taste of chilli instead of sour.
Sayings about speech
| Saying | Lanna script | Meaning (from the dictionary) |
|---|---|---|
| kam bo mi paeng sai | คําฯบํมีแปงฯไส่ | something that never happened, or barely did, embroidered far beyond the truth until others misunderstand and the person talked about is harmed |
| pak wan kon som | ปากฯหวฯานฯก้฿นฯส้฿มฯ | a sweet mouth and a sour bottom: mouth and heart do not match; kind, pleasant words, but ill will towards others inside |
| pak po pen pot | ปากฯพํอฯเปนฯพอฯด | a mouth worn soggy: teaching again and again, while the listener pays no attention, compared with the mouth of a frog in its dry-season sleep |
| khwan fai phai ho bo kum | ฅัวฯรไฟไผหํอฯบํกุ้ม | no one can wrap up smoke from a fire: a secret cannot stay hidden long; one day it is bound to come out |
The dictionary compares khwan fai phai ho bo kum with the Buddhist saying natthi loke raho nama, "there is no such thing as a secret in the world", and explains that the first one to know a secret is our own mind.
Sayings about kindness, gratitude and moderation
| Saying | Lanna script | Meaning (from the dictionary) |
|---|---|---|
| kam kho paeng luea kam sue | คําฯขํอฯแพงฯเหิลฯอฯอคําฯซื้ | what you get by asking costs more than what you buy, because you stay in the giver's debt for ever; if it is not truly needed, do not ask |
| kin im laeo ni | กินฯอิ่มฯแลฯวฯหีนฯ | eat your fill and run off: ungrateful, leaving without a backward glance once you have been helped |
| kam khi di kwa kam tot | กำขี้ดีก่วฯากำต฿ดฯ | a little is better than nothing at all: be content with what you get |
| khon bo mi het | ขอฯรบมีเหัดฯ | a log without mushrooms draws no one's interest: compared with an old person without wealth, whom the children and grandchildren often abandon |
| kok hang poi wat | ก฿กฯหางฯป่ลฯอฯฯยฯวัดฯ | cut off completely and left to fate, after being helped and warned many times without listening |
| kap ti yu dai | คัปฯที่อฺยฺู่ฯได้ | a cramped home can be lived in if the heart is at ease; but if the heart is cramped, even a great house brings no happiness |
Khon bo mi het is an image Khon Mueang see every rainy season. The dictionary explains that a log is useful because it gives mushrooms to pick and eat; if a log has no mushrooms, people walk past it. The saying therefore reminds people to save for old age, and reminds the young not to abandon their elders.
As for kok hang poi wat, the dictionary explains its origin: by old belief, a farm animal born deformed, such as a five-legged cow, was considered inauspicious, so it was taken and released at a temple.
Compared with central Thai proverbs
The Moradok Lanna dictionary compares several kham ba kao with central Thai sayings, which helps people from elsewhere understand them more quickly.
| Kham ba kao | Central Thai proverb the dictionary compares it with |
|---|---|
| ot phet kin wan | ot priao wai kin wan, "forgo the sour to eat the sweet" |
| tok nam hue po pia | tok nam hai piak thang tua, "fall in the water and get wet all over" |
| pak po pen pot | pak piak pak chae, "a wet, soggy mouth" (telling someone over and over) |
| pak wan kon som | pak prasai nam chai chueat kho, "a friendly mouth, a heart that cuts throats" |
| kam khi di kwa kam tot | kam khi di kwa kam tot, "a fistful of dung beats a fistful of wind"; sip bia klai mue, "ten cowries close at hand" |
| kap ti yu dai | khap thi yu dai, khap chai yu yak, "a cramped place can be lived in, a cramped heart is hard to live with" |
Other sayings the dictionary gives as examples
The dictionary also quotes sayings in its explanations of other words, for example:
- under สอกกอก (crafty): "หลวั๋กบ้านนอก บ่เต้าสอกกอกในเวียง", however clever a country person is, they are no match for the craftiness of town people
- under เปิงใจ๋ (pleasing): "เปิงใจ๋แฮ้ง บ่เปิงใจ๋ก๋า เปิงใจ๋ครูบา บ่เปิงใจ๋พระหน้อย", pleasing to the vulture but not to the crow, pleasing to the khruba but not to the little novice
- under จ๊กก๊ก (sitting hunched): "นั่งจ๊กก๊กเหมือนครกบ่ต๋ำ บ่ปากสั๋กกำถามก็บ่อู้", sitting hunched like a mortar no one pounds, and not saying a word when asked
Summary
- Kham ba kao (read kam ba kao) means "the words of the people of old": the proverbs and teachings of Lanna.
- Kham ba kao like to compare life with everyday things, such as hot and sweet tastes, logs, smoke and water.
- Their main lessons are diligence and care, watching your words, and kindness and gratitude.
- Many have central Thai counterparts, such as ot phet kin wan and ot priao wai kin wan.
Look up more kham ba kao and other Lanna idioms in the Moradok Lanna dictionary (in Thai), and if you wonder what paeng means in kam kho paeng luea kam sue, read on in the article Going to the market like a Khon Mueang.
Sources
- Moradok Lanna dictionary (in Thai): บ่าเก่า · อ๋ดเผ็๋ดกิ๋นหวาน · ควันไฟไผห่อบ่กุ้ม · ขอนบ่มีเห็๋ด · ม้อนกำอู้
