Languages of China
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There are several hundred languages in
.According to the 2010 edition of Nationalencyklopedin, 955 million out of China's then-population of 1.34 billion spoke some variety of Mandarin Chinese as their first language, accounting for 71% of the country's population.[3] According to the 2019 edition of Ethnologue, 904 million people in China spoke some variety of Mandarin as their first language in 2017.[4]
Spoken languages
The spoken languages of nationalities that are a part of China belong to at least nine families:
- The Tibetans)
- The Hlai (Li people); 9 official ethnicities.
- The Hmong–Mien family: 3 official ethnicities
- The Wa)
- The
- The Dongxiang, and related groups; 6 official ethnicities.[6]
- The Hezhe, etc.; 5 official ethnicities.
- The Koreanic family: Korean
- The Pamiri people). There is also a heavily Persian-influenced Äynu language spoken by the Äynu peoplein southwestern Xinjiang, who are officially considered Uyghurs.
- The Utsuls, who speak the Tsat language but are considered Hui.)
Sino-Tibetan
- Sinitic
- Chinese, 汉语, 漢語
- Mandarin Chinese, 官话, 官話
- Beijing Mandarin, 北京官话, 北京官話
- Standard Chinese, 普通话, 普通話
- Singaporean Mandarin, 新加坡华语, 新加坡華語
- Malaysian Mandarin, 马来西亚华语, 馬來西亞華語
- Taiwanese Mandarin, 台湾华语, 臺灣華語
- Taipei Mandarin, 台北腔/国语, 臺北腔/國語
- Northeastern Mandarin, 东北官话, 東北官話
- Jilu Mandarin, 冀鲁官话, 冀魯官話
- Jiaoliao Mandarin, 胶辽官话, 膠遼官話
- Zhongyuan Mandarin, 中原官话, 中原官話
- Lanyin Mandarin, 兰银官话, 蘭銀官話
- Lower Yangtze Mandarin, 江淮官话, 江淮官話
- Southwestern Mandarin, 西南官话, 西南官話
- Beijing Mandarin, 北京官话, 北京官話
- Jin Chinese, 晋语, 晉語
- Wu Chinese, 吴语, 吳語
- Shanghainese, 上海话, 上海話
- Huizhou Chinese, 徽语, 徽語
- Yue Chinese, 粤语, 粤語
- Cantonese, 广东话, 廣東話
- Ping Chinese, 平话, 平話
- Gan Chinese, 赣语, 贛語
- Xiang Chinese, 湘语, 湘語
- Hakka language, 客家话, 客家話
- Min Chinese, 闽语, 閩語
- Southern Min, 闽南语, 閩南語
- Hokkien, 泉漳话, 泉漳話
- Teochew dialect, 潮州话, 潮州話
- Eastern Min, 闽东语, 閩東語
- Pu-Xian Min, 莆仙话, 莆仙話
- Leizhou Min, 雷州话, 雷州話
- Hainanese, 海南话, 海南話
- Northern Min, 闽北语, 閩北語
- Central Min, 闽中语, 閩中語
- Shao-Jiang Min, 邵将语, 邵將語
- Southern Min, 闽南语, 閩南語
- Mandarin Chinese, 官话, 官話
- Chinese, 汉语, 漢語
- Bai, 白語
- Dali language, 大理語
- Dali dialect(Bai: Darl lit)
- Xiangyun dialect
- Yitdut language/Jianchuan language, 剑川语, 劍川語
- Yitdut dialect(Bai: Yit dut)
- Heqing dialect(Bai: hhop kait)
- Bijiang language
- Bijiang dialect
- Lanping dialect(Bai: ket dant)
- Dali language, 大理語
- Songlin
- Cai-Long
- Tibeto-Burman
- Tujia
- Puroik
- Qiangic
- Qiang
- Gyalrongic
- Gyalrong (rGyalrong, Jiarong)
- Khroskyabs (Lavrung)
- Horpa (Stau)
- Prinmi
- Muya (Munya)
- Zhaba
- Choyo (Queyu)
- Tangut (extinct)
- Tibeto-Kanauri
- Bodish
- Zhangzhung (extinct)
- Lolo–Burmese–Naxi
- Jingpho–Nungish–Luish
- Mishmi
- Tani
Kra–Dai
(Possibly the ancient Bǎiyuè 百越)
- Be
- Kra
- Gelao
- Kam–Sui
- Hlai/Li
- Tai
- Zhuang (Vahcuengh)
- Bouyei
- Dai
- Tai Lü language
- Tai Nüa language
- Tai Dam language
- Tai Ya language
Turkic
- Karluk
- Kipchak
- Oghuz
- Siberian
- Äynu
- Fuyu Kyrgyz
- Western Yugur
- Tuvan
- Old Uyghur(extinct)
- Old Turkic(extinct)
Mongolic
- Para-Mongolic
Tungusic
Korean
Hmong–Mien
(Possibly the ancient Nánmán 南蛮, 南蠻)
Austroasiatic
Austronesian
Indo-European
- Russian
- Tocharian (extinct)
- Saka (extinct)
- Pamiri, (mislabelled as "Tajik")
- Portuguese (spoken in Macau)
- English (spoken in Hong Kong)
Yeniseian
- Jie (Kjet) (extinct) (?)
Unclassified
Mixed
- Wutun (Mongolian-Tibetan mixed language)
- Macanese(Portuguese creole)
Written languages
The following languages traditionally had written forms that do not involve
- The Dai people
- Tai Lü language – Tai Lü alphabet
- Tai Nüa alphabet
- The Daur language – Manchu alphabet
- The Hmong people – Hmongic languages – Hmong writing(Pollard script, Pahawh Hmong, Nyiakeng Puachue Hmong, etc.)
- The Kazakhs – Kazakh language – Kazakh alphabets
- The Koreans – Korean language – Chosŏn'gŭl alphabet
- The Kyrgyz – Kyrgyz language – Kyrgyz alphabets
- The Lisu script
- The Manchus – Manchu language – Manchu alphabet
- The Mongolian alphabet
- The Dongba characters
- The Qiang people – Qiang language or Rrmea language – Rma script
- The Santa people (Dongxiangs in Chinese) – Santa language – Arabic script
- The Sui – Sui language – Sui script
- The Tibetan alphabet
- The Uyghurs – Uyghur language – Uyghur Arabic alphabet
- The Xibe – Xibe language – Manchu alphabet
- The Yi language – Yi syllabary
Many modern forms of spoken Chinese languages have their own distinct writing system using Chinese characters that contain colloquial variants. These typically are used as sound characters to help determine the pronunciation of the sentence within that language:
- Sichuanese
- Written Cantonese – Cantonese
- Written Shanghainese – Shanghainese
- Hakka
- Written Hokkien – Hokkien
- Teochew
Some non-Sinitic peoples have historically used Chinese characters:
- The Koreans – Korean language – Hanja
- The Chữ nôm
- The Zhuang (Tai people) – Zhuang languages – Sawndip
- The Bouyei people – Bouyei language – Bouyei writing(方塊布依字)
- The Bai people – Bai language – Bai writing(僰文)
- The Dong language (China) – Dong writing(方塊侗字)
Other languages, all now extinct, used separate
- The Jurchens (Manchu ancestors) – Jurchen language – Jurchen script
- The Khitans (Mongolic people) – Khitan language – Khitan large and small scripts
- The Tanguts (Sino-Tibetan people) – Tangut language – Tangut script
During Qing dynasty, palaces, temples, and coins have sometimes been inscribed in five scripts:
During the Mongol Yuan dynasty, the official writing system was:
- 'Phags-pa script
Chinese banknotes contain several scripts in addition to Chinese script. These are:
- Mongol
- Tibetan
- Arabic (for Uyghur)
- Latin (for Zhuang)
Other writing system for Chinese languages in China include:
- Nüshu script
Ten nationalities who never had a written system have, under the
Language policy
One decade before the demise of the
Mandarin has been promoted as the commonly spoken language for the country since 1956, based phonologically on the dialect of Beijing. The North Chinese language group is set up as the standard grammatically and lexically. Meanwhile, Mao Zedong and Lu Xun writings are used as the basis of the stylistic standard.[5] Pronunciation is taught with the use of the romanized phonetic system known as pinyin. Pinyin has been criticized for fear of an eventual replacement of the traditional character orthography.[5]
The Chinese language policy in
However, in this schema,
In 2010, Tibetan students protested against changes in the Language Policy on the schools that promoted the use of Mandarin Chinese instead of Tibetan. They argued that the measure would erode their culture.[10] In 2013, China's Education Ministry said that about 400 million people were unable to speak the national language Mandarin. In that year, the government pushed linguistic unity in China, focusing on the countryside and areas with ethnic minorities.[11]
Mandarin Chinese is the
Study of foreign languages
English has been the most widely-taught foreign language in China, as it is a required subject for students attending university.[14][15] Other languages that have gained some degree of prevalence or interest are Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian.[16][17][18] During the 1950s and 1960s, Russian had some social status among elites in mainland China as the international language of socialism.
In the late 1960s, English replaced the position of Russian to become the most studied foreign language in China.[citation needed] After the Reform and Opening-up policy in 1988, English was taught in public schools starting in the third year of primary school.[19][20]
Russian, French, and German language classes have been made widely available in universities and colleges.[21] In Northeast China, there are many bilingual schools (Mandarin-Japanese; Mandarin-Korean; Mandarin-Russian), in these schools, students learn languages other than English.
The Economist reported in 2006 that up to one fifth of the population was learning English. Gordon Brown, the former British prime minister, estimated that the total English-speaking population in China would outnumber the native speakers in the rest of the world in two decades.[22]
There have been a growing number of students studying Arabic, due to reasons of cultural interest and belief in better job opportunities.[23] The language is also widely studied amongst the Hui people.[24] In the past, literary Arabic education was promoted in Islamic schools by the Kuomintang when it ruled mainland China.[25]
There have also been a growing number of students choosing to learn Urdu, due to interest in Pakistani culture, close ties between the respective nations, and job opportunities provided by the CPEC.[26]
Interest in Portuguese and Spanish have increased greatly, due in part to Chinese investment in Latin America as well as in African nations such as Angola, Mozambique, and Cape Verde. Portuguese is also one of the official languages in Macau, although its use had stagnated since the nation's transfer from Portugal to the PRC. It was estimated in 2016 that 2.3% of Macau's locals spoke the language,[27] although with government backing since then, interest in it has increased.[28]
Esperanto became prominent in certain circles in the early 20th century and reached its peak in the 1980s, though by 2024 its prominence had declined.[29]
Use of English
In China, English is used as a lingua franca in several fields, especially for business settings,[30] and in schools to teach Standard Mandarin to people who are not Chinese citizens.[31] English is also one of the official languages in Hong Kong.
See also
- Language Atlas of China
- Linguistic Atlas of Chinese Dialects
- Varieties of Chinese
- List of varieties of Chinese
- Han Chinese subgroups
- Demographics of China
- Racism in China
- Hong Kong English
- Languages of Hong Kong
- Culture of Macau
- Macanese Portuguese
- List of ethnic groups in China
- Classification of Southeast Asian languages
- Cantonese
- Standard Chinese
- Chinglish
References
Citations
- ISBN 1-932728-29-5. Archived from the original(PDF) on 16 July 2007.
Tertiary institutions with instruction in the languages and literatures of the regional minorities (e.g., Xinjiang University) have faculties entitled Hanyu xi ("Languages of China Department") and Hanyu wenxue xi ("Literatures of the Languages of China Department").
- ^ Lewis, M. Paul, ed. (2009). "Languages of China". Ethnologue: Languages of the World (16th ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International.
The number of individual languages listed for China is 299.
- ^ Mikael Parkvall, "Världens 100 största språk 2007" (The World's 100 Largest Languages in 2007), in Nationalencyklopedin. Asterisks mark the 2010 estimates for the top dozen languages.
- ^ Eberhard, David M.; Simons, Gary F.; Fennig, Charles D., eds. (2019). "China: Languages". Ethnologue: Languages of the World (22nd ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International.
- ^ S2CID 144750671.
- ^ a b Western Yugur is a Turkic language, whereas Eastern Yugur is a Mongolic language.
- ^ JSTOR 2757936.
- ^ "The Prospects for the Long-Term Survival of Non-Han Minority Languages in the South of China" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 August 2008 – via linguapax.org.
- ISBN 978-3-11-092459-6.
- ^ Branigan, Tania (20 October 2010). "Tibetans Protest Against Language Curbs in Chinese Schools". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ "Beijing Says 400 Million Chinese Cannot Speak Mandarin". BBC News. 6 September 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ Qin, Amy (4 September 2020). "Curbs on Mongolian Language Teaching Prompt Large Protests in China". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 19 September 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
- ^ Lin, Jin 林瑾 (24 September 2020). "Nèiménggǔ jiàogǎi fēngbō zhēngyì yánshāo – Zhōngguó jiàoyùbù: Bùtóng kànfǎ shì zhànshí de" 内蒙古教改风波争议延烧 中国教育部: 不同看法是暂时的. Duōwéi xīnwén 多维新闻.
- ^ Faisal Kidwai (22 October 2018). "Retooling English Learning in China". Chinadaily.com.cn. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ "What Languages Are Spoken in China?". WorldAtlas. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
- ^ Phillips, Tom (2 September 2018). "Study of Portuguese and Spanish Explodes as China Expands Role in Latin America". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ Zhou, Lihua; Zhou, Sally (9 July 2017). "Increasing Number of Middle Schools Offer Russian Language Courses". Chinadaily.com.cn. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ "Top 6 Most Popular Foreign Language Teachers in China". At0086.com. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ "English Craze Hits Chinese Language Standards". YaleGlobal Online. Archived from the original on 25 February 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2018.
- ^ The Miami Herald (25 April 2004). "Asians Offer Region a Lesson – in English". YaleGlobal Online. Archived from the original on 19 February 2010. Retrieved 6 March 2010.
- ^ "German Language Study on the Rise Worldwide". ICEF Monitor. 30 April 2015. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ "English Beginning to be Spoken Here". Economist.com. 12 April 2006. Archived from the original on 17 April 2006.
- ^ Walker, Alyssa (18 December 2017). "More Chinese Students Study Arabic". Academiccourses.com. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ISBN 0-7007-1026-4.
- ISBN 978-0-415-36835-3.
- ^ "Chinese Students Eager to Learn Urdu Anticipating Job Opportunities Under Cpec". Dawn. Agence France-Presse. 11 June 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ Statistics and Census Service (2017). "2016 Population By-Census Detailed Results".
- ^ "In Macau, the Old Colonial Tongue Is Back in Vogue". The Economist. 8 November 2018. Archived from the original on 10 November 2018. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ He, Kai; Wu, Huiyuan (15 September 2023). "China's Last Esperanto Students". Sixth Tone. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
- .
- ISBN 978-94-007-6475-0.
Sources
- This article incorporates text from Encyclopædia of religion and ethics, Volume 8, by James Hastings, John Alexander Selbie, Louis Herbert Gray, a publication from 1916, now in the public domain in the United States.
- This article incorporates text from Burma past and present, by Albert Fytche, a publication from 1878, now in the public domain in the United States.
Further reading
- Kane, D. (2006). The Chinese Language: Its History and Current Usage. North Clarendon, VT: Tuttle. ISBN 0-8048-3853-4.
- Halliday, M. A. K.; Webster, J. (2005). Studies in Chinese Language. London: Continuum. ISBN 978-1-84714-449-2.
- Ramsey, S. Robert (1987). The Languages of China (illustrated, reprint ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0691014685.
- Hong, B. (1978). Chinese Language Use. Canberra: Contemporary China Centre, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University. ISBN 0-909596-29-8.
- Cheng, C. C.; Lehmann, W. P. (1975). Language & Linguistics in the People's Republic of China. Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 0-292-74615-6.