‘Handsome’ and ‘omelette’ among new words that can be added to Thai licence plates

BANGKOK: Motorists in Bangkok can now personalise their licence plates with 70 new Thai words, according to the Royal Gazette today.

Most of the new words are considered auspicious by Thais, including the ones for “precious stones”, “rich in happiness”, “smoothness”, “nobility” and “wealthy”.

But they also include everyday words such as “omelette”, “clear” and “handsome”, as well as typical Thai nicknames such as “Ton”, “Toey” and “Nid”.

The new words can be added to licence plates of passenger vehicles with up to seven seats, according to the Royal Gazette announcement.

Thai licence plates normally contain two Thai letters followed by a four-digit number. In response to growing vehicle registrations, the Department of Land Transport (DLT) started adding a number in front of the letters.

In 2022, the department introduced personalised car plates via auctions where prices can start at one million baht (US$27,355). The auctions are now held regularly at DLT offices around the country. The money raised goes towards road safety initiatives.

The personalised plates can use extra Thai letters to form a word of the user’s choice.

The record for the country’s most expensive licence plate was shattered in December 2022 when a buyer paid 45.09 million baht ($1.2mil) for a much-coveted plate. - The Nation/ANN