I'm sorry but this is wrong on so many levels. I'm Thai-Chinese too but I know most Thai are not even looking like that. The picture you used at 1:15 are not even Thai. The left one is Paveena Singh who is Indian obiviously. And the right one looks like Malay people. Frankly, the picture you used at 0:58 as Thai chinese is actually Lanna people who is of Tai ethnic. The real majority of today Thais. Please be more careful and educated more about ethnicities topics in Thailand, since Thai are 'not' an ethnicity, but a newly created word to united 70+ more ethnics in Thailand including Han Chinese and Mon, Khmer, Malay and many more. But majority of us are Tai like those in southern China.

I would say not all thai chinese has high socioeconomic background. We have high middle class and low middle class thai chinese family in Thailand.

Dude, Not all Thai-Chinese family are from high society and intelligent. I know plenty of poor Thai-Chinese folks as well. It's like saying all black people are poor and commit crime. And all white people are super rich and NOT homeless.

Even with a Chinese background, the guy is American. And as such, this video is such a typical American generalization and lacking knowledge beyond the surface. It was also a weird flex to say that he's dated Thai Chinese (which to most is not a flex or anything worth mentioning). Good content usually but getting to the point where the guy who has spent a year in Thailand thinks he knows it all.

this is so disrespectful. in our culture, we do not stereotype people by race. if you were born, grew up, or have some Thai blood then you are Thai. and in this generation, most of your 'Thai-Chinese' are not 100% Chinese blood. it's not about the race but it's about where you get to know that woman. you just haven't had a chance to date a thai-thai rich woman.

How much chinese DNA to consider being thai chinese, or local thai? And how do u know that if that certain person u see is pure thai or pure chinese while there are many ethicity in thailand and people here are all consider thai and we have the same sharing culture that already mix with all the culture. Don’t u think is it a little bit rude that u are outsider come to other country and pointing out this one Thai this one is not. I know american culture is the biggest in the world but atleast have some respect to other culture. Why people go to japan and don’t call the light skin japanese a chinese and call the dark skin japanese an Ainu ? How long could Thai that have some chinese blood could be considered as a Thai in the eye of foreigner? Some western attitude are toxic and unnaturally, sometime just keep it in your country please

You sounded so american. thai women, huh? thai is just a nationality not ethnicity. They can be thai-chinese, thai-malay, thai of tai descendant, thai-mon and more and we typically do not call ourselves anything other than "thai" here

Love the video man

I'm southeast Asian and Chinese people have have been with us since olden days. I'm sorry to agree but, yes, Chinese culture is more materialistic than Thai culture or any southeast Asian culture.

Yes the picture at 0:58 are Northern Thai (Lanna) women not “Chinese Thai”. And The left picture at 1:15 is actually Paveena Singh, she’s full blood Indian born and raised in Thailand, she competed in Miss Universe Thailand and was a runner up I believe. Thai people are a mix of Tai, Mon, Khmer, Malay & Han Chinese depending on the region. Tai people or Dai people are part of the ethnolinguistics group, tai-kradai which originates in Yunan province and are a different ethnic group to the Han Chinese peoples. They migrated south thousands of years ago when the mongols invaded. The “Chinese Thais” in Bangkok mainly have Teochew ancestry and migrated mainly couple hundreds years ago. “Chinese Thai” in southern Thailand mainly have Hokkian ancestry, similar to Chinese Malaysians. I’m actually “half Thai half Chinese” myself, my mother is from the North & my father is of Teochew background. I live in the UK now. My ancestry DNA showed ancestry matching: Dai, Vietnamese, Southern Han and South East Asian. Note: I’m using quote marks for “Chinese Thai” because this term is seldom used in Thailand. Most Thai with Chinese ancestry wouldn’t identify with that and would simply see themselves as Thai. Only if they are pressed on it if asked they would say that they have Chinese ancestry/blood.

Hey dude, Since I can read, write and speak Thai I want to give you more stories (history/background) that you may not know about Thailand according to this clip. My mom and dad family background are (old) Thai family, the old time believer among (old/ordinary) Thais (in the past) in term of a dreaming career was not in "business". The Thai dreaming career were a career in government (or work for the King) or serve in military and this is their mindset. So if you couldn't become one in those careers then most likely you will end up in agriculture career. We didn't have much experience (in the past) in business plus we have never been in a hard life situation like others. Thailand always has plenty of food to eat and survived in our own ways of life that is why we lack of hard work attitude and ambition to make more money. When life is easy there is no reason to try harder, I am talking about old time thinking here OK? As you can see there is no successful millionaire/billionaire worked for government (except the corrupt officials) and I will refer this reason below. The Chinese immigrants (mostly from Guangdong came to Thailand before and after Chiang Kai Shek era) these people were looking for a better life since in China at that time were in war time, unstable government, bad economy (poverty) and starvation. When these immigrants arrived Thailand they have almost nothing with them (according to my parents, grand parents told me) but in their mind they wanted to start a new life and willing to work hard soThailand welcome them completely. When these Chinese immigrants immigrated to Thailand they don't have much choice in career mainly because they don't speak the language and they have to learn new culture, environment and so on. So to survive in a new country the only choice they have is to do "business", they started to do anything to earn money like labor work, food vendors and any odd jobs that they can do to earn money and to survive. As I mentioned above Thais (in the past ) had no idea about doing business so there is no competition it only among Chinese immigrants. When you used to have a hard life and you don't want to be in that situation again the ambition, hard work and opportunities will be factors for these Chinese immigrants to become successful until today and that is the reason why Thai-Chinese are well-off than ordinary Thais. However from my observation I can see Thai-Chinese adapted Thai culture very well and among Thais we also accepted each other very well. It kind of funny to think about it that until now no one in my family is doing business except 1 or 2 are in entertainment business and the rest are in military, police and government officials. It doesn't matter to me you prefer Thai-Chinese girl than (ordinary) Thai girl as long as you have high respect to them and it doesn't matter where you are coming from. I grew up outside Thailand and more than half of my lifetime I lived outside Thailand, I understand both eastern and western culture. I love both --> my motherland (Thailand) and the country that I grew up and lived in for long time. Do me a favor dude, stop bragging/talking about your race, it doesn't matter what race or origin you are from. In Thailand we are all the same, one race is not better than another.

Nice info vlog Forrest. Thanks.

Another good observation Forrest.

0:58 they are Tais (Thai people in the northern or north of the north-eastern parts) 1:15 left picture one can be southerner (Thai-Malay people) or half indian. Beside,Thai is not race,There are atleast 70 tribes mixed together.

There’s no full blood thai, Thai is invented term not so long ago.Thai people maybe of Lao, Khmer, Malay ancestry. I would say Real Thai are those who are mixed of Tai, Mon, Chinese ancestry. These people are the founder of modern Thailand.

Good insights. Great Video@

Hey Forrest thanks for the upload. I can fully understand your point of view. such is happening among the Chinese in Sg, Indonesia , Malaysia ......etc.

Forrest Lee, the photo that you showed us are NOT ethnic Han Chinese but ethnic Tai. There are four main ethnic groups in Thailand 1) Tai 2) Han 3) Mon-Khmer 4) Malay. They are all Thai citizens but look differently. Both ethnic Han Chinese and ethnic Tai have fair skin so it's difficult to tell them apart except to look at the culture that they practise.

As a Malaysian American Chinese, all xxx-Chinese are family, education, and status focused. xxx-Chinese of any kind will generally have better education and wealth level than the native population around them. The natives could be Thai, Pilipino, or even American, doesn't matter. Low performing guys should stay away, you aren't good enough. However, if you come from an affluent family and have good education and morals, you got a decent shot. Chinese highly value educated candidates of good character. The question going through her family member's mind is, "Will this candidate be a valuable addition to our family?" Chinese are the least resistant to marrying out if the candidate is up to par. This is different from Koreans and Japanese who tend to be more insular. China was a multiethnic empire throughout its history while Korea and Japan were ethno kingdoms.

Hearing from a Malaysian Chinese Christian living in Australia. You handle this topic pretty spot on. The culture, language, value system, belief, family traditional value is all "linked." The Chinese Thais are no different from the Chinese Malaysian & Indonesian etc...

Excellent topic.

Hi Forrest, Good to know and awesome tips on the subject of this video. You summed it well " Date what the f... makes happy " 😅

I dated an Akha woman. She is very fair skinned, but she looks Chinese, but was brought up with both Akha and Thai culture... ethnically, she is Chinese, because the Akha people were from Yunnan province in China and speak their own language and have roamed across to Myanmar, Laos and Thailand as they are a migratory hill tribe people. However, if some Thai people know this, they treat them as lower class citizens; especially the Thai people in Chiang Rai since there are more Akha people there. She had been brought up a few years in her teens by an independent Thai woman whom she calls her second mother and has a lot of respect for her. And, because of this upbringing, she carries herself very well and puts people in their place if they talk down to her. Although we broke up a while back we are friends and chat once in a while. Her father is a very hard worker raising and selling pigs (the black ones) to mainly Akha people as this is their prefernce. Although they are not rich people, they are very giving with what little they have. I have a deep admiration for my ex's family and have visited with them a few years after I broke up with her. I am half Chinese, Hawaiian, and White mix. I can pass for many south east asian people. Once, my ex and I were shopping in the mall and the guy helping us spoke English to her and Thai to me 555. I always treat everyone with respect wherever I go and have an affinity to Thai culture because it is laid back like Hawaiian culture. I believe we have different cultures, ethnic and blood backgrounds, but there is only one race, human. And perhaps, if we all think like this, we could get along a lot better. -Peace, Love and Harmony everyone!

Interesting Forest. One thing I wonder about is what differences there are in the extended family's influence on the couple while dating, when engaged, when married.

In China over 650 million people making $100 per month I don’t why all Chinese has high social economic back ground haha

Hey man, are you a programmer?

Some people really don’t get the point he’s not saying ALL thai Chinese women come from higher economic backgrounds compared to thai women, this is just a generalization which is purely from anecdotal evidence which I agree with. Most people don’t understand this because these “high-so” Thai Chinese women aren’t hanging out in walking street telling these broke farangs that didn’t have success dating back home how handsome they are

Hello , Forrest Lee I am Thai-Chinese 4th generation from Southern Thailand. My family background is from Zhangzhou Fujian. Of course, at first, I was a bit appalled by this kind of analysis of Thai girls. But anyway, I want to tell you that Not all Thai and Chinese girls are rich. We are like other Thai people. But our face and skin color may look whiter than Pure Thais :))))))))

your primary focus in a relationship or marriage shoud not be background, race, or status.. but two characters match.. when two characters match all issues can easily be resolved...many divorces and break ups happen because two different characters crash...if you can find in your own race.. thats a cheery on the cake... good luck...

Many Chinese fled to Thailand to escape war or communism. Most didn't come to Thailand because they were rich.

🐐 get this man to 100K already

This dude is kind of a dork about women. I would NOT take this guys advice.

Hahaha to all your farang teachers! Great video btw!

THANK YOU my FRIEND for this HONEST opinion.....................Cheers **

Great video Forest! Can you do one on the key difference between dating kathoeys and thai women?

Very interesting to get your perspective on these cultural differences!! Very well articulated!!

as a chinese american, im digging this video... along with my yellow fever brothers... keep em coming

for people criticising forrest, hey, this is a youtube video not a university thesis - lol

sigh... status? Surprised we are still doing this. Love and knowing you'll make each other happy and together handle what the world has to throw at you was always my baseline. Peace

Hi Forrest, Loving your channel! Just curious, what income bracket does it take to be considered Hi-So in Thailand? How about net worth bracket? Cheers!

Money gives you more options. I would not say money solves 90% of one’s problem.

Overall, your observation is correct. Chinese descents hold much power in terms of economics since most of their ancestors are Teochew Chinese (one may have heard the term "Jews of the East"). These Chinese are highly respected by Thai people because of their hard-working, family culture, and ethics (Sorry, today mainlanders, you are not counted here). Even though Thai Chinese are richer than the pure Thais, believe it or not, we don't have a racial conflict here because we don't have a distinction between Thai-Chinese and Native-Thai people. They are all Thais from our point of view (This sentiment is very different if you look at the situations of Chinese in Malaysia or Indonesia). No one will say "Oh! Chinese own everything in Thailand nowadays", because we don't think Thai-Chinese are Chinese. "Races play no role in Thailand" If Thai people see you speak Thai and most importantly accept and practice Thai cultures, they will be very happy to recognize you as a Thai regardless of your race or where you come from. (This makes it very different from the context in the US)

You're great! Love your videos ... very interesting about the difference in women. You're correct, love is fine but if there is no bank, it can easily go out the window. Hope you find your girl & she treats you like a King! Blessings

Very Anglo-American point of analysis at the beginning.

Sounds like the movie, "Crazy, Rich Asians" but I think that was S'pore. Great video. I like aspirational people.

What you said is generally true.

in our culture.. in Chinese culture, wealth and status plays significant role😂 Forrest ol chap, so it does in all cultures. If you paid attention, you would have noticed it in US UK and allover the globe! Even in Communist Cuba, I was stunned to discover a rich enclave in Havana

You're the last person I would look to for dating advice. There are so many awesome women in Thailand that are not bar girls and are great girlfriends. But you seem to be stumbling over yourself and talking about having trouble finding dates on Tinder. I think you should really try to come back down to earth and stop trying to act like you are so far above all the other expats that live in Thailand because you're not.

I like this video and understand where you coming from. I don't know about historical ethnic migrations, demographics studies or racial divisions. All I know my preference is for lighter skin Asian women and when I go to Thailand, that's what I'll hope to meet. I'm of North Asian blood and my North Asia born gf is the same as me. That's the type I'm attracted to. Not looking for any long term relationship, just a vacation in Thailand. I'm looking into what cities or provinces have the most Thai's of Chinese descendants to visit, along with BKK. That said I believe most Asian countries have the similar customs, beliefs regardless of skin color. Don't stick chopsticks in the ricebowl, don't whistle at night, don't hammer at night, no shoes indoors etc. Need to show respect for all people especially in their own country, regardless of skin tone.

Well, it’s wired you go around asking Thai girls Do you have Chinese in you? 😆

Planning your sentimental life like it was a business... I wonder if the most squalidly pragmatic in this aspect is tUS or Chinese culture :)

Can u do a video about visas? What visa do u have that allows u to rent and stay in Thailand ?

So glad I found your channel. I was looking for a rental in BKK and your Airbnb with Sophie popped up. By the way, you nailed it about Thai women. I am far far beyond dating chapter, but hope all the best to everyone who in that moment of life. Just be who you are, kind, sincere, work hard, have a purpose and you will attract the same kind of human beings.

Forrest Lee I just left Thailand and you look like a muah thai boxer from Thailand lol , I agree thia women with Chinese mix background are more appealing to my eyes it’s comes downs to personal preference tho,

มั่วมาก เพื่อนเราคนนึง ปู่ย่าเป็นชาวจีนอพยพ พ่อเธอขับแท็กซี่ แม่เป็นแม่ค้าในตลาดนัด ตัวเธอเรียนไม่จบเพราะท้องในวัยเรียน ไม่เกี่ยวเลยว่ามีเชื้อจีนจะมาจากครอบครัวร่ำรวย ตระกูลเก่าแก่จากอยุธยา พวกนามสกุลดังที่สืบเชื้อสายมาจากราชวงศ์ พวกนั้นคือกลุ่มที่กุมอำนาจในสังคมอย่างแท้จริง แล้วมีอยู่เยอะมากในไทย

My Thai spouse is a full-blood Thai lady and she is more down to earth, not demanding, and focuses more on love and the relationship. No wonder we've been together for 30 years.

As an American guy who's lived in Asia for over 20 years and who is married to a Thai girl, I thought you summarized the scene here pretty well. However, it's important to point out that not all Thai or Thai-Chinese girls fall into the same categories.

It's a very materialism society around world now. Wealth is a man's guts, without it very hard.

I was adopted from Thailand. Do I look fully Thai or Thai Chinese please? I don't know my full ethnic background

Please do some research on Xishuangbanna and Zhaung people of southern China

1:14 the first girl girl is thai-Indian it very hard to find 100% thai they away mix like thai-lao or thai-Chinese but it just example

Are you friends with David Bound?

I don’t understand why it’s a such hard thing for farangs to learn that Thai isn’t an ethnicity. Thais from northern to southern these are two separate people/ regions their genetic markups and cultures are different so how could you say Thai versus Chinese Thai as such the rest of Thailand are the same people who have the same mindset.

Money buys power, lust and social status but you cannot buy love or respect!

Not totally true, Northern or North Eastern Thai have white skin and look similar to the Chinese too. Bear in mind that Thai Society is mixed with several races.

I don’t know how you got all of these tainted information from, but the “Thai” culture is really complex and mixes with so many layer of both socio economical factor and also ethnical factor. To be able to fully grasp the whole complexity of this required a very good command of Thai, which I believe, hardly possessed by “ignorant” foreigners. The pure Thai concept is not even a thing before the propagandist, Phiboon promoted such a thing during the height of autocracy regime just before WW2. I won’t try to elaborate on every topic to make you understand all the nuances since it would be too long and impossible for such a medium like “KZfaq comment section”. Nevertheless, one thing that to keep in mind is that every regions in Thailand (can be branched into 4 big regions) has their own uniqueness and history which thereby become the distinction in their cultures. The so-called “Pure Thai” as you said, with an appearance of “cruder” and not so “sophisticated” in nature, is the results of their cultural proximity rather than their ethnicity. For instance, in the northern part of Thailand (which can be roughly represented the pure “Tai” ethnic since they don’t mix with other ethnicities that much) people tends to be more preserve and traditional. Even for the Thai-Chinese in the north is significantly different from Thai-Chinese from, let say, Bangkok or Phuket. The regional cultural characteristics play a much bigger roll to how to see a true distinction not from the ethnicity. Ps. As others have noted, the Thai with darker complexion doesn’t mean they are pure “Thai”. And if one wants to argue that pure “Tai” is the pure “Thai”. The Tai is actually pale and has the skin tone of the same complexion like any Han Chinese people.

It's ORIGIN-CURRENT RESIDENCY(or nationality) order. What little Forrest is referring as Thai-Chinese are actually Chinese-Thais. Little Forrest will introduce himself to anyone as Chinese-American not American-Chinese. Do you see the difference???

Agree!

How frequently do Han people in Thailand 🇹🇭 still speak in a Han dialect and have a fully Han name?

"money solves 90 percent of problems" I guess the wives of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Will Smith, and Jonnie Depp didn't get the memo.

Well done Lee - keep up the good work! And please issue more content - more frequently when you can 👍👍 Stay strong! 💪

Being born and raised in multicultural Toronto Canada, I share your observations about Chinese women's preoccupation with other people's money. Several male Chinese IT co-workers have made similar comments to me, and cited this as the reason *they would never marry a Chinese woman*. I have repeatedly been told the Chinese woman's primary goal of "marrying into money" stems from the supposed tradition of the Chinese father usually leaving his estate to his son(s) only -- not his daughters. Is there any truth to this, or has this ever been true?

LOL.. the discussion on these types of things are always too funny! It's just a stupid thing to focus on...

Forrest what a great video. please do more videos like this . dating and women there

Thank you Forrest for your insights. I am currently chasing/pursuing a Thai mixed Chinese girl and it seems quite similar to your stories. Her dad gave her $2k to spend (USD I'm assuming) and she bought TWO bras. I'm absolutely shocked and speechless.

I really enjoy this kind of videos from you and your perspective. I can always relate to that and it's so insightful. You feel like my big brother haha

Your right I married A Hong Kong Chinese and your 100 percent right on! I’m Asian American so it’s a lot easier to share our lives. No money issues here got plenty!

what is your experience dating Latinas? Is there certain expectation from them or from you? interesting keep exploring for us! 🌞

True southeast asian mixed with chinese is all about status my mix chinese friend told me this also the losing face

Yooo your the maaan bruh

Thank you so much, Forrest Lee. It was very informative and I learn so much about Thai-Chinese and Ordinary Thais. You are so knowledgeable.

Even in the Philippines, the Chinese family are the wealthy wealthy families in the Philippines. The chinese/philippino families own everything and go to the best schools. The philippino only family are the lower level.

It looks like suggestion for gold digger. You guys have a chance if you are rich, young and looking good. Forget about it if you guys are just average expat. Another qualification for gold diggers, you guys have to be white skin or pale skin like Korean, Japanese or Chinese.

In a country like Thailand, you certainly don't want to be poor.

I tried 2 thai Chinese women 1- my Dr 2- my gf So beautiful, good behavior, mercy me more than anyone thought Take care me a lot ❤ Greetings from Dubai 🙋

What is real Thai? Thailand is a mix of people of many nationalities, including Chinese, Mon, Vietnamese, Khmer, Malay, Persian, Indian, as well as many Western hybrids. The local people of northern Thailand are white people. That's not Chinese. But it's Lanna. Northern people who are not Chinese are said to be the best looking in Thailand. Chinese immigrants usually live in the central and southern regions. And we can hardly tell who is truly Thai or have Chinese descent. Many Chinese people in Thailand are not white-skinned. You misunderstand that Lao people have dark skin. Lao people are white people. It is the same race as Lanna in northern Thailand. and there is an assumption that it is related to southern China and the Vietnamese tribes. In fact, there are rumors that Thailand was founded by southern Chinese people, such as Yunnan, During the Ayutthaya period, there were Chinese people who had long ago settled in Thailand. descended from both Thai kings and noble families of Thailand Until you can't tell who used to be Chinese. Thai people of Chinese descent also have tan skin. Sometimes they judge white people in Thailand as being Chinese. A tan that isn't Chinese would be incorrect.

0:57 You showed the photo of Northern Thai women , lol.

Interesting observations. Sounds like you’re a serial dater in Thailand lol. I’m heading out there this summer for a few months, what’s the best dating app these days? Thanks.

I blame prime minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram for changing the name of the country from Siam to Thai 70+ years ago that confuse not only the foreigner but also many new Thai generations who don't do research on the history and just rely on the teaching in school. First of all, Tai and Thai are the same things same ethnicity. But to be fair, in our modern time, we Thai people are quite all aware and agree that the people who live in this country "Thailand" in the present time are from many roots and ethnicities which is not only from "Thai or Tai ethnicity". "Thai people" in the modern days especially among the young generation seem to promote equality among each ethnicity, seeing every Thai citizen as the same Thai. That is why I can see some people comment here and seem to be piss-off when you try to discriminate between each Thai citizen.

there are two things i’d want to point out. first of all, the idea of separating thais and thais of chinese descent into two different groups is quite old fashion. that’s 50-60+ year old people’s mindset tbh. people here don’t really care about being what or what else anymore regardless of their background. i’ve been exposed to so called “hiso” society, even though i’m not one of them, i can say that there are so many thai thais that are in the group and it’s nothing to do with racial background at all. second of all, not all of thais of chinese descent have light skin and not all thai thais have dark skin. thai people simply are a mixed of vary ethnicities. some have light skin, some don’t (and vise versa for thais of chinese descent as well) and i’m saying this from a perspective of a young half thai-chinese who has dark skin and has been exposed to both upper class and lower class people myself

So refreshing hearing this amid all the farang thinking all Thai females are gogo pattaya girls. That said not all Thai-Thai are gogo girls. The majority of chinese here is teochew. If you research how bangkok bank was founded you would be impress. It was founded by money teochewnang sent back to china. There are more reason why teochew settle here.

Money is not very thing , but the girl 99.9% choose guy with money.

Can you please make a video about emigrate to thailand. What things need to be done. What is necessary to open a bank acount types of visas ect. Taxes of stocks and dividends gains...

Exactly right; if you are a foreigner, you won't most likely be dating upper crust women due to all the reasons you spoke to. Because you are Asian American you have the inside track. Rock your privilege Forrest, I would if I were in your position we all would . It's just a natural as most Socio-Economic realities all over the world.

Chinese has a saying "date and marry a person of equal social and economic background, unless you are exceptional ", 門當户對

I m 100% Thai. And i also didn’t choose Asian was born too.

I think Northern Thais who don't look much like Chinese or Brown Skin Thais Either, So Thailand seems to have two types of native sort of Thais?

Yeah for the ones I knew, that observation is spot on. I would not date a Thai chinese women though, I grew up with that facade of wealth around me and I strongly reject it and would not want to get myself into a relationship where this is the core of it.

I don’t buy shit and I look like shit but my bank account and retirement account says otherwise. Meaning I wouldn’t want those girls if that’s the case. Wealth is not visible. Try reading the psychology of money

Basically light skin vs dark skin in thai culture