How to Say “Where are you from” in Thai
มาจากที่ไหน
maa-càak thîi-nǎy
Where are you from
ค่ะ and ครับ are polite particles — they depend on the speaker's gender, not the listener's.
Word by word
When to use it
A common early-conversation question when meeting foreigners. มา (maa) means "come," จาก (càak) means "from," ที่ไหน (thîi-nǎi) means "where." The full version คุณมาจากที่ไหน (khun-maa-càak-thîi-nǎi) sounds more formal; dropping คุณ is natural in casual chat.
Why you've seen it spelled differently
You may have seen มาจากที่ไหน written as: maa jak tee nai, ma chak ti nai.
There is no single standard for writing Thai in the Roman alphabet — phrasebooks, road signs, and tourist guides each follow a different system, and many just invent their own spellings. The romanization on this page uses a consistent IPA-based system that marks all five tones and distinguishes short from long vowels. The same word always gets the same spelling. Paste any Thai to see it romanized →
Related phrases
Get the free Thai starter pack
Join the list for the beginner starter path, practice resources, and early access to the full lesson library.