You can now call Bangkok in another way - “Krung Thep Maha Nakhon”

According to The Star, English speakers and those who use the Roman alphabet will not have to start referring to Bangkok as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon instead of the more familiar "Bangkok."

After a seemingly benign change in punctuation in official instructions generated a flurry of suspicion that the city's name was being altered, Thailand's Royal Society, which is responsible for academic and linguistic standards, issued the following statement.

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The English name of “Bangkok” is changed to “Krung Thep Maha Nakhon”. (Photo / Retrieved from Pixabay)

This Tuesday, the Cabinet approved a Royal Society request to change the capital's international designation from "Krung Thep Maha Nakhon; Bangkok" to "Krung Thep Maha Nakhon (Bangkok)."

Many individuals attributed significant weight to the accompanying argument that altering the semicolon to parentheses would "revise" the name of the capital city while keeping the "old" name in brackets.

The Royal Society emphasized in a Facebook post on Wednesday that their new guidance was only a stylistic tweak, as curiosity increased.

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However, the name of Bangkok can still be used. (Photo / Retrieved from Pixabay)

"The official name of the capital city in the Roman script can be written both as Krung Thep Maha Nakon and Bangkok," the agency noted, assuaging non-Thai speakers' concerns about adopting the more cumbersome term.

Bangkok's Thai name, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon, is a condensed version of the capital's full name, which is rooted in Pali and Sanskrit and is more of a phrase than a name: Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit.