Development of Signs and Brochures by Using Thai-English Translation for Tourism at Prasat Phanom Rung and Prasat Muang Tam, Buriram Province

Abstract

The three objectives of this research were 1) to examine problems and needs of the entrepreneurs of souvenir shops and entrepreneurs of restaurants at Prasat Phanom Rung and Prasat Muang Tam for developing English signs and brochures by using Thai-English translation for tourism, 2) to develop English signs and brochures by using Thai-English translation for tourism for them, and 3) to find out their satisfaction with the developed English signs and brochures.  The samples comprised 1) 40 entrepreneurs of the souvenir shops, 10 entrepreneurs of the restaurants, and 15 foreign tourists. In addition, 15 representatives from the 50 Thai samples were purposively chosen for a focus group discussion.  And 2) 35 general signs, 316 items of products/foods/drinks from souvenir shops and restaurants, and 2 sets of English brochures: one from Prasat Phanom Rung and one from Prasat Muang Tam.                 

The research instruments consisted of 1) a needs analysis questionnaire, 2) a focus group discussion form, 3) a Source Language and Target Language (SL-TL) data collection form, and 4) a satisfaction questionnaire.  The statistics employed to analyze the quantitative data were percentage, mean, and standard deviation whereas the qualitative data was analyzed through content analysis. The research results revealed that:

1. Bilingual signs (Thai and English) were most needed by the samples (4.72). Car Parking Lot/Tourists’ Parking Lot signs were most needed (4.52), followed by directional signs (4.50), and restroom signs (4.42), respectively.


2. Most of the focus group discussion’s participants viewed that English signs and brochures for tourism were very necessary for the tourism of the target area. Thai language signs should be expeditiously translated and developed into multilingual signs to prepare for the ASEAN community.


3. Overall, experts evaluated the developed signs and brochures at a high level (4.53).


4. The levels of satisfaction of the samples towards the developed signs and brochures for tourism were overall found at a high level (4.49). Having considered each category, it was found that their satisfaction with the English menus was ranked first (4.68).