Names of Thai Battle Elephants in Lilit Taleng Phai: An Ethnosemantic Study

Abstract

This research article aims to analyze the names of Thai battle elephants in Lilit Taleng Phai in terms of their meanings and to study the concepts embraced by Thai people as reflected in the naming of 26 Thai battle elephants based on the theory of Ethnosemantics. The data were collected from Lilit Taleng Phai, a Thai literary work exhalting the victory of King Naresuan the Great's elephant duel. The findings reveal that the meanings of the words employed to name the Thai battle elephants could be categorized into 18 groups, presented in the order of frequency from the highest to the lowest as follows: 1) goodness, beauty, prosperity, auspice; 2) victory; 3) elephant; 4) power; 5) the three planes of existence; 6) fast action; 7) king; 8) gem and jewelry; 9) soldier; 10) war, battle; 11) killing, death; 12) fire; 13) city; 14) deity; 15) mythical creatures ; 16) courage; 17) weapon; and 18) defeat (of the enemy). The concepts of the beliefs and values embraced by the people in the ruling class of the Ayudhya period as reflected in the naming of the Thai battle elephants are found as follows: the Buddhist beliefs in merit, the three planes of existence, the holocaust on doomsday, and the mythical creatures of the Himmapan Forest; the Hindu beliefs in the Chakra as the weapon of Vishnu and the elephant as a complementary element of a king’s glory; the belief in naming battle elephants using auspicious words; the values of naming battle elephants in accordance with the Treatise on War Strategy; and the values of naming battle elephants using rhyming words. Even though elephants are no longer used for battle, naming elephants using auspicious words is a practice that is still in existence in Thai society. This reflects the concepts implemented by Thai people that are both extant and evolving with the different contexts of different times.