Nirat
Nirat is a type of Thai poem, often written in khlong meter, in which traditionally the poet describes his separation from either a loved one or a familiar place. Typically, sights and sounds on the poet's journey will remind him of the girl he has left behind and evoke a sense of melancholy, which is then expressed through clever punning on the names of places or meanings of the names of places that he passes through.
Famous nirat poems include Khlong Nirat Hariphunchai, composed in the sixteenth century, in which the poet Si Thep describes his journey from Chiang Mai to Hariphunchai in Lamphun, and Khlong Kamsuan, in which the poet Si Prat describes his journey from Ayutthaya to exile in Nakhon Si Thammarat. The most famous of all nirat poets is Sunthorn Phu (1786–1855), who broadened the thematic scope of the genre beyond the conventional theme of separation and love-longing, by including reflective, humorous, and philosophical passages. With increasing travel abroad in the nineteenth century, nirat poems often became "travel poems," recording the poet's impressions of foreign lands. Particularly famous is Nirat London by Mom Rachothai, the interpreter with the Thai mission sent to the court of Queen Victoria in 1857. In this poem, the poet mentions the English ports of Dover and Portsmouth and describes in detail the material sophistication of mid-nineteenth-century Britain, court manners, functions at Windsor Castle, and Queen Victoria herself. Although the nirat poem became less popular during the twentieth century, competitions are held to encourage its survival, and prominent poets still occasionally turn their hand to it.
Further Reading
Chitakasem, Manas. (1972) "The Emergence and Development of the Nirat Genre of Thai Poetry." Journal of the Siam Society 60, 2 ( July): 135–168.
Wenk, Klaus. (1986) "Some Remarks about the Life and Works of Sunthon Phu." Journal of the Siam Society, 74: 169–198.
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