Standard Singaporean Mandarin
Standard Singaporean Mandarin (
In terms of phonology, vocabulary and grammar, Standard Singaporean Mandarin is similar to Putonghua (Standard Chinese in the People's Republic of China). Minor discrepancies appear in different vocabulary usage.
History
After Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew announced and kickstarted the Speak Mandarin Campaign in 1979, the Promote Mandarin Council started research on Mandarin standardisation based on case studies in mainland China and Taiwan.
Differences between standard and colloquial forms
Major differences between Standard Singaporean Mandarin and
The term "rojak" (a Malay food used for describing "mixture") is most appropriate in describing colloquial Singaporean Mandarin. Colloquial Singaporean Mandarin is the equivalent of Singlish in the Mandarin speaking world of Singapore. The word "Singdarin" has been used to name the Colloquial Singaporean Mandarin.
Standard Singaporean Mandarin also differs from colloquial Singaporean Mandarin in terms of vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. This is because not all Singaporean Chinese speak Mandarin at home. Some could speak other Non-Mandarin Chinese varieties or English most of the time and have less exposure to Standard Mandarin. All these factors have influenced the way in which colloquial Singaporean Mandarin is formed.
Colloquial Singaporean Mandarin uses a variety of Southern Chinese exclamatory particles, in lieu of standard Mandarin equivalents. An example is the loan exclamatory final particle 囉 (lor) from Cantonese (analogous to Singlish usage), instead of the Mandarin exclamatory final particle 嘛/呀/啊 (ma/ya/a):
- 就 是 說 嘛/呀/啊!(standard)
- 就 是 說 囉!(colloquial)
- "That's what I'm saying!"
Another example is the use of the Cantonese expression "做咩" (zou me):
- 為什麼? (standard)
- 做 莫? (colloquial)
- "Why?" / "Doing what?"
The exclamatory final particle 咧 (leh) from Hokkien is used in colloquial Singaporean Mandarin:
- 不是 這樣 子 的! (standard)
- 不是 這樣 子 的 咧! (colloquial)
- "It's not like this!"
Another phrase found in colloquial Mandarin is derived from the Hokkien expression siáⁿ-mih lâi ê (啥物來的):
- 這 是 什麼? (standard)
- 什麼 來 的? (colloquial)
- "What is this?"
Standard Singaporean Mandarin uses pure Mandarin words. Colloquial Singaporean Mandarin, on the other hand, uses loan words from other languages. The English loan word "then" is commonly used in place of Mandarin word 才 in colloquial Singaporean Mandarin. Again, a loan exclamatory final particle 囉 (lor) from Cantonese is used instead of Mandarin exclamatory final particle 啊/呀 (a/ya). The English loanword then is also often used to replace the Mandarin word 然后 (ránhòu) in colloquial Singaporean Mandarin:
- 我 没有 做 功課 才 被 罵 啊! (standard)
- 我 没有 做 功課 then 被 罵 囉! (colloquial)
- "It is only due to the fact that I did not do my homework that I was scolded."
Differences from other forms of Standard Mandarin
Phonology differences
Minor differences occur between the phonology (particularly the tones) of Standard Singaporean Mandarin and other forms of Standard Mandarin.
Chinese character | Definition | Singapore | Mainland China | Taiwan | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
休息 | Take a rest | xiūxí | xiūxi | xiūxí | The character 息 is pronounced with the 2nd tone in Standard Singaporean Mandarin, similar to that in Taiwan. In Mainland China, 息 is pronounced as a light (neutral) tone (simplified Chinese: 轻声; traditional Chinese: 輕聲; pinyin: qīng shēng) instead. |
垃圾 | Rubbish | lèsè/lājī | lājī | lèsè | The pronunciation for 垃圾, which was influenced by Wu Chinese, is the same in Singapore and Taiwan where the older pronunciation from before 1949 is maintained. However, due to influence from mainland China, the pronunciation is inclining itself towards putonghua. |
角色 | Role | jiǎosè | juésè | jiǎosè/juésè | The pronunciation for 角色 is the same in Singapore and Taiwan where the older pronunciation jiǎosè from before 1949 has been maintained. However, both juésè and jiǎosè can be used interchangeably in the Chinese-speaking world. |
包括 | Include | bāokuò | bāokuò | bāoguā/bāokuò | The pronunciation for 包括 is the same in Singapore and mainland China. But in Taiwan, the older pronunciation of "guā" for 括 before 1949 continued to be used, alongside the modern pronunciation of "kuò". |
血液 | Blood | xuěyì | xuèyè/xuěyè | xiěyì/xiěyè | The colloquial pronunciation for 血液 is xuěyè and xiěyè for mainland China and Taiwan respectively. Singapore preserves the literary pronunciation of both characters xuěyì from before 1949. |
Lexicon differences
There are differences in the use of different
Ever since the 1980s, Standard Singaporean Mandarin has been inclining itself more towards
While the majority of vocabulary is shared by Standard Mandarin throughout East Asia, there are a few significant differences in choice of words. For instance, "pineapple" is 黄梨 (huánglí) in Singapore (from Hokkien 王梨 ông-lâi), but 菠蘿/菠萝 (bōluó) in mainland China and 鳳梨 (fènglí) in Taiwan.
The examples below illustrate some differences in the lexicon used in Singapore, mainland China and Taiwan:
- 我想吃快熟麵。 (Singapore)
- 我想吃方便面。 (Mainland China)
- 我想吃速食麵。 (Taiwan)
- "I wish to eat instant noodles."
- 我要搭德士 。 (Singapore)
- 我要搭出租车 。 (Mainland China)
- 我要搭計程車。 (Taiwan)
- "I want to take a taxi."
- 在部署突擊行動時,最重要的是要確保公眾及相關單位內任何人士的安全。[4] (Singapore)
- 在部署突擊行動時,最重要的是要確保公眾及相關單位內所有人士的安全。 (Taiwan)
- 在部署突击行动时,最重要的是要确保公众以及有关单位内所有人士的安全。 (Mainland China)
- "In deploying the raid, the most important thing is to ensure the safety of anyone in the public and associated units."
Media
Television
Channel | Frequency | Name | LCN
|
Language | Picture format | Type | Broadcast area | Transmitter site | 24-hours | Multiplex | Opening date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
31 | 554MHz | Channel 8 | 3HD | Chinese | 16:9 )
|
General entertainment
|
Singapore Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District (Malaysia) Batam/Batam Islands, Riau Islands (Indonesia) |
Bukit Batok Transmission Centre | MUX2 Mediacorp Bukit Batok Transmission Centre | 31 August 1963 23 November 1963 (Official) | (Test transmissions)|
33 | 570MHz | Channel U | 7HD | general entertainment
|
MUX3 Mediacorp Bukit Batok Transmission Centre | 6 May 2001 |
Radio
All the frequencies below can be heard in the Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District, Singapore and Batam City/Batam Islands.
Frequency (Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District, Singapore and Batam City/Batam Islands) | TRP (kW) | Station | RDS | Language | Genre | Broadcast area | Transmitter site | Opening date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
93.3 MHz (Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District, Singapore and Batam City/Batam Islands) | 6 | YES 933 | YES_933_ | Mandarin Chinese | Top 40 (CHR) (Mandopop/K-pop) | Singapore Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District (Malaysia) Batam/Batam Islands, Riau Islands (Indonesia) |
Bukit Batok Transmission Centre | 1 January 1990 |
95.8 MHz (Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District, Singapore and Batam City/Batam Islands) | 10 | CAPITAL 958 | CAPTL958 | News/Talk |
1 March 1937 | as Radio Singapore and Chinese Service (under British Malaya Broadcasting Corporation)|||
97.2 MHz (Johor Bahru/Johor Bahru District, Singapore and Batam City/Batam Islands) | 6 | LOVE 972 | LOVE_972 | 23 September 1994 |
Daily newspaper
Newspaper | Language | Format | Slogan, Motto, Tagline & Theme | Founded | Average daily circulation | Position (Rank) | Officially Named | Officially Called |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lianhe Zaobao (联合早报) (Nanyang Siang Pau (南洋商报) and Sin Chew Jit Poh (星洲日报)) | Chinese | Chinese oldest daily broadsheet Singapore's #1 Mandarin daily newspaper |
Singapore's #1 Mandarin Daily Newspaper | 6 September 1923Nanyang Siang Pau (南洋商报)) 15 January 1929 (as Sin Chew Jit Poh (星洲日报)) |
(as 999,995,991 (print + digital) | #1 | Nanyang Siang Pau (南洋商报) Sin Chew Jit Poh (星洲日报) |
Nanyang Siang Pau (南洋商报) Sin Chew Jit Poh (星洲日报) |
See also
Notes
- ^ 吴英成 (Wu Yingcheng) (2003). "全球华语的崛起与挑战 (The Rise and Challenges for Mandarin in the World)". Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
- ^ 《時代新加坡特有詞語詞典》 (Dictionary of Contemporary Singaporean Mandarin Vocabulary). 新加坡联邦出版社出版. 1999.
- ^ "《全球華語詞典》 (Global Chinese Dictionary)". Archived from the original on 23 March 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
- ^ "《聯合早報》(Lianhe Zaobao)". 2019.