Which dialect of chinese to learn

However, being the official language of the nation, Mandarin is arguably the easiest and most useful dialect to learn as is not only the most widely spoken, but also the most widely taught, with large amounts of teaching materials available. Characters Select one of the characters from this word to see the stroke order. Member Feature. Please create an account with The Chairman's Bao in order to use this feature. Join us! Not Now Become Premium. Log in. In Guangdong province in the very south of China, Cantonese announcements are read before Mandarin, and there were massive protests when the government in Beijing wanted to enforce Mandarin-only television programming.

Hong Kong and Macau, immediately adjacent to Guangdong, also speak Cantonese, and are some of the few places in China that are not bound by the law regarding Mandarin.

Traveling in Hong Kong, I was shocked to find that I was able to communicate in Mandarin more easily with the Hong Kongese than with someone in Shanghai—until I realized that it was a second language for both of us, which must have meant a simpler shared vocabulary and set of grammar structures.

Many Chinese dialects are at least as different from each other as the Romance languages are, which should classify them as separate languages. However, for now they are almost universally described as dialects, and since most of them are spoken locally and not taught, there is no real way to teach it but aurally, or through immersion.

Finally, a practical point: Understanding the differences between dialects will also prepare you for your next trip to China. For those interested in the Chinese language, the diversity and beauty of dialects should be a motive for you to immerse yourself in not just Mandarin, but in local dialects and regional life as well.

Exposure is essential to discovering the many nuances of local culture and life. Unsupported Browser Detected. The Many Dialects of China. Other Articles by Kiril Bolotnikov. Move Over Double-O Seven. Omniglot is how I make my living.

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Differences and Similarities between Mandarin, Cantonese, and Chinese You've probably noticed that the sounds of Cantonese and Mandarin are quite different, but there are many similarities, especially when it comes to characters and grammar. Close similarities between Mandarin and Cantonese With the exception of the second characters in the example, the characters are very similar.

Similarities that may not be quite as close In many ways, grammar is very similar between Mandarin and Cantonese. Major differences The sounds of spoken Mandarin and spoken Cantonese are very different. Where is Each Language Spoken? Mandarin or Cantonese? In order for China to develop and be able to compete with the developed world, it was absolutely vital to bridge the gap between the different dialects and create a lingua franca. In order to make this language the official language it became taught in schools in every part of China.

What this means is that all of the people in these regions, where Mandarin was not previously spoken, had to learn this new language. The result is that many Chinese people are actually bilingual already, so they speak their own local dialect at home, and the standard Mandarin language in the classroom and formal settings such as work. As people get older, they may begin to forget Mandarin since they only speak in their native language.

So this means that, for example, most people who live in Shanghai speak the Shanghai dialect, which is known as Shanghaihua which is completely different to Mandarin , they speak Mandarin at school and shanghaihua at home.

Young people in Guangdong speak Mandarin at school but cantonese at home. So this is why, as a foreigner, Mandarin is the only Chinese language worth learning, if you can speak standard Mandarin as a foreigner, young people will understand you in every part of China, and increasingly so in Hong Kong where Mandarin is increasingly being taught alongside Cantonese and English in schools. It is true that some of the major dialects are mutually incomprehensible, but still they are all linked by one thing: the Chinese characters.

Besides, their differences in vocabulary or grammar are not something fundamental. Their key difference lies in pronunciation, or we can say accent. There are three main dialects.