Paper Title
Chinese Language and Life Beliefs: A Case Study of Thai Chinese in Trang Province (Thailand)

Abstract
This paper aims to study items from the Chinese language for describing ThaiChinese'slife beliefs. Two aspectsare investigated: first, Chinese vocabulary used in their daily life, and second, their life beliefs. This paper applies descriptive research techniques, with data being collected from documents and fieldwork in Muang and Huaiyot Districts in Thailand's Trang Province. The results of this study show that Chinese vocabulary used in Trang can be divided into three types, namely food, artefacts,and rituals. Thai Chinese's lexis for food mostly has its origins in (1) the food's appearance, and (2) the pronunciation of a term designating a given type of food. Moreover, this paper illustrates food-related beliefs based on the social context, the cultural context or everyday life. Index Terms - Chinese language, life beliefs, Thai Chinese