Languages of China
The Languages of China are the languages that are spoken by China's 56 recognized ethnic groups. The languages of China are collectively known as Zhongyu (simplified Chinese: 中语; traditional Chinese: 中語; pinyin: Zhōngyǔ)[citation needed], and their study is considered a distinct academic discipline in China.[3]Zhongyu span eight primary language families, are diverse morphologically and phonetically, and may be mutually unintelligible to each other. The languages most studied and supported by the state include Chinese, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uyghur and Zhuang. China has 292 living languages and 1 extinct language (Jurchen) according to Ethnologue.[4]
Standard Chinese (known in China as Putonghua) is the official national spoken language for the mainland. Several other autonomous regions have additional official languages. Language laws of China do not apply to either Hong Kong or Macau and hence have different official languages (Cantonese) than the mainland. For example, Tibetan has official status within the Tibet Autonomous Region and Mongolian has official status within Inner Mongolia.
There are large economic, social, and practical incentives to be functional in Putonghua, a standardised form of the Mandarin group of dialects which is based in Beijing and spoken with varying degrees of dialectical influences across the northern and southwestern China. Putonghua serves as a lingua franca within the Mandarin-speaking region, and to a lesser extent across the various other language groups in mainland China.
Spoken languages
The spoken languages of nationalities that are a part of the People's Republic of China belong to at least nine families:
- The Sino-Tibetan family: 19 official ethnicities (including the Han and Tibetans)
- The Tai–Kadai family: several languages spoken by the Zhuang, the Bouyei, the Dai people, the Dong people, and the Hlai (Li people). 9 official ethnicities. Considered a branch of Sino-Tibetan in China.
- The Hmong–Mien family: 3 official ethnicities
- The Austroasiatic family: 4 official ethnicities (the De'ang, Blang, Gin (Vietnamese), and Wa)
- The Altaic sprachbund or family: 18 official ethnicities
- The Turkic family: Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Salars, etc. 7 official ethnicities.[5]
- The Mongolic family: Mongols, Dongxiang, and related groups. 6 official ethnicities.[5]
- The Tungusic family: Manchus (formerly), Hezhe, etc. 5 official ethnicities.
- The Korean language
- The Indo-European family: 2 official ethnicities (the Russians and Tajiks). There is also a heavily Persian-influenced Äynu language spoken by the Äynu people in southwestern Xinjiang who are officially considered Uyghurs.
- The Austronesian family: 1 official ethnicity (the Gaoshan, who speak many languages of the Formosan branch), 1 unofficial (the Utsuls, who speak the Tsat language but are considered Hui.)
Below are lists of ethnic groups in China by linguistic classification. Ethnicities not on the official PRC list of 56 ethnic groups are italicized. Respective Pinyin transliterations and simplified Chinese characters are also given.
Sino-Tibetan
- Sinitic
- Chinese/Han, Hàn, 汉; Traditional Chinese: 漢
- Chinese Muslim/Hui, Huí, 回
- Chinese/Han, Hàn, 汉; Traditional Chinese: 漢
- Tibeto-Burman
- Bai, Bái, 白 (Sinitic?)
- Tujia, Tǔjiā, 土家 (Qiangic?)
- Qiangic
- Qiang, Qiāng, 羌
- Pumi/Prinmi, Pǔmǐ, 普米
- Baima, Báimǎ, 白马 ; Traditional Chinese: 白馬
- Tangut, Xīxià, 西夏 (extinct)
- Bodish
- Tibetan, Zàng, 藏
- Lhoba, Luòbā, 珞巴
- Monpa/Monba, Ménbā, 门巴; Traditional Chinese: 門巴
- Lolo–Burmese–Naxi
- Jingpho–Nungish–Luish (?)
- Jingpho, Jǐngpō, 景颇 ; Traditional Chinese: 景頗
- Derung, Dúlóng, 独龙 ; Traditional Chinese: 獨龍
- Nu, Nù, 怒
Tai–Kadai
(Possibly the ancient Bǎiyuè 百越)
- Kra
- Gelao, Gēlǎo, 仡佬
- Kam–Sui
- Hlai/Li, Lí, 黎
- Tai
- Standard Zhuang, Zhuàng, 壮 ; Traditional Chinese:壯
- Bouyei, Bùyī, 布依
- Dai, Dǎi, 傣
- Tai Lü language, Dǎilèyǔ, 傣仂语 ; Traditional Chinese: 傣仂語
- Tai Nüa language, Déhóng Dǎiyǔ, 德宏傣语 ; Traditional Chinese: 德宏傣語
- Tai Dam language, Dǎinǎyǔ, 傣哪语; Dǎidānyǔ, 傣担语
- Tai Ya language, Dǎiyǎyǔ, 傣雅语
- Tai Hongjin language, Hónghé Dǎiyǔ, 红金傣语 ; Traditional Chinese: 紅金傣語
Altaic
(Note: Altaic is considered by some linguists to be a Sprachbund, and by others to be a language family.)
- Karluk
- Uyghur, Wéiwúěr, 维吾尔; Traditional Chinese: 維吾爾
- Uzbek, Wūzībiékè, 乌孜别克 ; Traditional Chinese: 烏茲別克
- Kipchak
- Kazakh, Hāsàkè, 哈萨克 ; Traditional Chinese: 哈薩克
- Kyrgyz, Kēěrkèzī, 柯尔克孜; Traditional Chinese: 柯爾克孜
- Tatar, Tǎtǎěr, 塔塔尔 ; Traditional Chinese:塔塔爾
- Oghuz
- Salar, Sǎlá, 撒拉
- Eastern
- Western Yugur, Yùgù, 裕固
- Äynu, Àinǔ, 艾努
- Mongolian, Měnggǔ, 蒙古
- Daur, Dáwò'ěr, 达斡尔
- Khitan, Qìdān, 契丹 (extinct)
- Southeastern
- Monguor, Tǔ [Zú], 土[族]
- Eastern Yugur, Yùgù, 裕固
- Dongxiang, Dōngxiāng, 东乡 ; Traditional Chinese: 東鄉
- Bonan, Bǎoān, 保安
- Kangjia, Kāngjiā, 康家语 ; Traditional Chinese: 康加語
- Monguor, Tǔ [Zú], 土[族]
- Southern
- Manchu, Mǎn, 满 ; Traditional Chinese: 滿
- Jurchen, Nǚzhēn, 女真 (extinct)
- Xibe, Xībó, 锡伯 ; Traditional Chinese: 錫伯
- Nanai/Hezhen, Hèzhé, 赫哲
- Manchu, Mǎn, 满 ; Traditional Chinese: 滿
- Northern
- Evenki, Èwēnkè, 鄂温克
- Oroqen, Èlúnchūn, 鄂伦春 ; Traditional Chinese: 鄂倫春
Korean/Choson, Cháoxiǎn, 朝鲜 ; Traditional Chinese: 朝鮮
Others
Hmong–Mien
(Possibly the ancient Nánmán 南蛮 ; Traditional Chinese: 南蠻)
- Hmong/Miao, Miáo, 苗
- Mien/Yao, Yáo, 瑶 ; Traditional Chinese: 瑤
- She, Shē, 畲
Austroasiatic
(Possibly the ancient Bǎipú 百濮)
(Possibly the ancient Bǎiyuè 百越)
- Vietnamese/Kinh, Jīng, 京
- Formosan languages, Gāoshān, 高山
- Russian, Éluósī, 俄罗斯 ; Traditional Chinese: 俄羅斯
- Tajik, Tǎjíkè, 塔吉克
- Persian (spoken by Salar akhunds)[6]
- Portuguese (spoken in Macau)
- English (spoken in Hong Kong)
- Arabic (second language of Hui people)[7][8][9]
Written languages
The following languages traditionally had written forms that do not involve Chinese characters (hanzi):
- The Dai – Dai language
- The Hui – Chinese language – Xiaoerjing
- The Kazakhs – Kazakh language – Arabic script
- The Koreans – Korean language – Hangul
- The Kyrgyz – Kyrgyz language – Arabic script
- The Manchus – Manchu language – Manchu alphabet
- The Mongolians – Mongolian language – Mongolian alphabet
- The Naxi – Dongba script/Geba script
- The Sui – Sui language – Sui script
- The Tibetans – Tibetan language – Tibetan script
- The Uyghurs – Uyghur language – Arabic script
- The Xibe – Xibe language – Manchu alphabet
- The Yi – Yi language – Yi syllabary
Some formerly have used Chinese characters
- The Jurchens (Manchu ancestors) – Jurchen language – Jurchen script
- The Koreans – Korean language – Hanja
- The Khitans (Mongol ancestors) – Khitan language – Khitan script
- The Tanguts (Sino-Tibetan people) – Tangut language – Tangut script
- The Zhuang – Zhuang languages – Sawndip
Chinese palaces, temples, and coins have traditionally been inscribed in five scripts:
During the Mongol Yuan dynasty, the official writing system was:
Chinese banknotes contain several scripts in addition to Chinese script. These are:
Ten nationalities who never had a written system have, under the PRC's encouragement, developed phonetic alphabets. According to a government white paper published in early 2005, "by the end of 2003, 22 ethnic minorities in China used 28 written languages."
Language policy
Chinese language policy in mainland China is heavily influenced by Soviet nationalities policy and officially encourages the development of standard spoken and written languages for each of the nationalities of China. However, in this schema, Han Chinese are considered a single nationality, and official policy of the People's Republic of China (PRC) treats the different varieties of the Chinese spoken language differently from the different national languages despite the fact that they are more different from each other than, for example, the Romance languages of Europe. While official policies in mainland China encourage the development and use of different orthographies for the national languages and their use in educational and academic settings, realistically speaking it would seem that, as elsewhere in the world, the outlook for minority languages perceived as inferior is grim.[10] The Tibetan Government-in-Exile argue that social pressures and political efforts result in a policy of sinicization and feels that Beijing should promote the Tibetan language more. Because many languages exist in China, they also have problem regarding diglossia. Recently, in terms of Fishman’s typology of the relationships between bilingualism and diglossia and his taxonomy of disgloosia (Fishman 1978,1980) in China : more and more minority communities have been evolving from “diglossia without bilingualism” to “bilingualism without diglossia”. This could be an implication of mainland China’s power expanding.[11]
Study of foreign languages
It is also considered increasingly prestigious and useful to have some ability in English, which is a required subject for persons attending university. During the 1950s and 1960s, Russian had some social status among elites in mainland China as the international language of socialism. Japanese is the second most-studied foreign language in China[citation needed]. However, languages other than English are now considered as "minor languages" (小语种 ; Traditional Chinese:小語種 xiǎo yǔzhǒng) and are only really studied at university level apart from some special schools which are called Foreign Language Schools in some well-developed cities.
English is taught in the public schools starting in the third year of primary school.[1][2]
The Economist, issue April 12, 2006, reported that up to one fifth of the population is learning English. Gordon Brown, the former British Prime Minister, estimated that the total English-speaking population in China will outnumber the native speakers in the rest of the world in two decades.[12]
Literary Arabic is studied by Hui students.[7]
Literary Arabic education was promoted by the Kuomintang in Islamic schools when it ruled mainland China.[13]
Portuguese is taught in Macau as one of the official languages there and as a center of learning of the language in the region.
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 0-8264-5874-2
- Ramsey, S. R. (1987). The languages of China. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-06694-9
- 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
References
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.
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 - ^ a b http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/english-craze-hits-chinese-language-standards
- ^ a b http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/content/asians-offer-region-lesson-%E2%80%93-english
- ^ Dwyer, Arienne (2005). The Xinjiang Conflict: Uyghur Identity, Language Policy, and Political Discourse. Political Studies 15. Washington: East-West Center. pp. 31–32. ISBN 1-932728-29-5. "Tertiary institutions with instruction in the languages and literatures of the regional minorities (e.g., Xinjiang University) have faculties entitled Zhongyu xi ("Languages of China Department") and Zhongyu wenxue xi ("Literatures of the Languages of China Depratment")."
- ^ Languages of China – from Lewis, M. Paul (ed.), 2009. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Sixteenth edition. Dallas, Tex.: SIL International.
- ^ a b Western Yugur is a Turkic language, while is Eastern Yugur a Mongolic language.
- ^ James Hastings, John Alexander Selbie, Louis Herbert Gray (1916). Encyclopædia of religion and ethics, Volume 8. EDINBURGH: T. & T. Clark. p. 892. Retrieved 2010-11-28.(Original from Harvard University)
- ^ a b Michael Dillon (1999), China's Muslim Hui community: migration, settlement and sects, Richmond: Curzon Press, p. 155, ISBN 0-7007-1026-4, retrieved 2010-06-28
- ^ Journal of Southeast Asian studies, Volume 16, McGraw-Hill Far Eastern Publishers, 1985, p. 117, retrieved 2010-06-28
- ^ Albert Fytche (1878), Burma past and present, C. K. Paul & co., p. 301, retrieved 2010-06-28
- ^ The prospects for the long-term survival of Non-Han minority languages in the south of China
- ^ Minglang Zhou, Multilingualism in China the politics of Writing reforms for minority languages 1949-2002 (2003)
- ^ "English beginning to be spoken here". The Economist. 2006-04-12.
- ^ Stéphane A. Dudoignon, Hisao Komatsu, Yasushi Kosugi (2006). Intellectuals in the modern Islamic world: transmission, transformation, communication. Taylor & Francis. p. 251. ISBN 978-0-415-36835-3. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
