The 'Soul' of the Tai re-examined
Terwiel, Barend Jan / Baumann, Benjamin![The 'Soul' of the Tai re-examined](https://support.digitalhusky.com/media/annotations/sorted/453/45379606/CHSBZCOP0345379606.jpg)
Khwan is certainly one of the most enigmatic concepts one encounters in the study of the Tai-speaking world. Variously rendered as 'soul', 'vital principle' or 'life essence', the concept eludes unambiguous translations as Western ontologies and the languages that reproduce them simply lack an analogous signifier. While a lot has been written on khwan, it seems that little progress was made in understanding their place in Tai conceptualization...