Thais use the word “farang” to describe or reference white-skinned foreigners. In Thai the word is spelt ฝรั่ง.
It is a contraction of the Thai word for French/France, ‘farangset‘, which dates back to French Indochina in the 17th Century.
Language experts have deduced that the word is taken from the Persian word farangī (فرنگی), which originally referred to the Franks (the major Germanic tribe). Incidentally, there is also a village in Iran called Farang.
Additionally, Frangistan was a term used by Muslims and Persians during the Middle Ages to refer to Western or Latin Europe.
Similar words with similar meanings are found in other languages, too. In Ethiopia and Eritrea, faranj or ferenj is a term used to describe white people of European descendant.
While there may be some dispute over its origin, one thing we do know is that ‘farang’ refers to white foreigners…
