Diabolical Dialects
Here's an article I wrote for China Today, but was ultimately sent to the chopping block because it was too confusing / sensitive.
Intro
When most foreigners think of the Chinese language, they imagine either Mandarin or Cantonese, primarily due to their lack of knowledge or exposure to Chinese language speakers. In fact, Chinese consists of hundreds of different language varieties, which are often referred to as ‘dialects’. While officially, Mandarin (普通话 Pǔtōnghuà, or Standard Chinese) is the sole official language of both Mainland China[1] and Taiwan, one of the four official languages of Singapore, and one of the six official languages of the United Nations, it is also recognized as the largest dialect group of Chinese. In addition, there are a variety of other mutually unintelligible Chinese dialects (方言 Fāngyán) that are widely spoken throughout the country. These can range from dialects used within a small village all the way to major dialect groups like Mandarin or Min. Chinese is often seen as one language with hundreds of dialects, although these 'dialects' are as far apart from each other as Russian and Spanish. However, Chinese is commonly referred to as one language, consisting of many unique cultural aspects that create today’s unified China.
Dialect vs. Language
Before going further, it’s important to understand what the difference between a dialect and a language is. Linguistically, both a language and a dialect are the same. However, the distinction is more of a political issue rather than an academic one. One of the most notable differences between a language and a dialect, in most people’s minds, is that the former is more prominent than the latter, both regarding the area it covers and the people who speak it. In other words, languages are perceived to include several dialects, as such is the case with Chinese.
A language is a broad term for a group of words and grammar used to express ideas. Dialects are subsets of languages; a variant of a language used by a subset of speakers. Frequently, these subgroups are distinguished by region, but sometimes also by socioeconomic status. Dialects can usually be understood by other speakers of the language, although some words may be unfamiliar or specific pronunciations may complicate understanding. For example, as an American, I can understand people from England, Canada, Australia, Singapore, and even Scotland, even though we are all speaking different dialects. Chinese dialects, mainly those in Southern China, however, are often not able to be understood unless they are a native speaker of that dialect. Many linguists believe that Chinese dialects contain the same differences that exist among Romance languages, such as Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese.
Origins
The hundreds of modern local Chinese dialects developed from regional variants of Ancient Chinese, which is thousands of years old. Traditionally, seven groups of dialects have been recognized; however, the Language Atlas of China distinguishes three further groups.
1. Mandarin (Beijing and Nanjing variants)
2. Wu (Shanghainese and Suzhounese variants)
3. Yue (Cantonese and Taishanese variants)
4. Min (Hokkien and Fuzhounese variants)
5. Hakka (Kejia)
6. Xiang (Hunanese)
7. Gan (Jiangxinese)
Language Atlas of China
8. Jin (Shanxi province much of central Inner Mongolia and areas in Hebei, Henan, and Shaanxi)
9. Huizhou (Huizhou, Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi)
10. Ping (Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, with some speakers in Yunnan province)
Early classifications of these dialects were based on provincial boundaries or significant geographical features. One of the reasons that many dialects in Northern China are mutually intelligible is due to the North China Plain, which provided few barriers to migration, leading to relative linguistic similarity. On the contrary, the mountains and rivers of southern China have led to the creation of the other major groups of Chinese dialects, each diverse and unique.
Uniting through Mandarin
In the 1930s a standard national language was adopted, with its pronunciation based on the Beijing dialect, but with vocabulary also drawn from other Mandarin varieties. It is also one of the most frequently used dialects of Chinese among Chinese diaspora communities internationally. Standard Mandarin Chinese now dominates public life in mainland China and is much more widely studied than any other variety of Chinese. Outside mainland China and Taiwan, the only varieties of Chinese commonly taught in university courses are Mandarin and Cantonese.
However, up until the mid-20th century, most Chinese people only spoke their local dialect. As a practical measure, officials of the Ming and Qing dynasties ruled the empire using a common language based on Mandarin varieties, known as Guānhuà (官話) meaning the speech of officials. Since the 1950s and 1960s, the government of the People's Republic of China in mainland China has promoted both Mandarin as an oral language and simplified Chinese characters for use in printing to encourage literacy – officially used in the People's Republic of China and Singapore.
China is Unique
Mainland China has hundreds of different dialects, many of which are not mutually intelligible. This is due to the differences in their phonology, and to a lesser extent, the slight variances in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. While central public services in China such as schools, hospitals, banks, the media, and the government use Mandarin to communicate every day, dialects are also used daily by people, but serve instead as a cultural identifier, bringing those from common regions together.
Despite a myriad of definitions, many linguists can agree that most dialects are often mutually intelligible. For example, an American and Australian both speak the language of English, but different dialects. Regardless, they can still understand each other. China is unique in the fact that many dialects from around China cannot be understood by someone from a different region. For example, someone from Shanghai who speaks (上海话Shanghaihua) would not be able to communicate with someone from Xiamen who speaks (闽南话 Minanhua). However, they would be able to read the same book because both can read Simplified Chinese characters. This is one reason, among catering to the deaf community, that on all Chinese television channels, subtitles are provided; simplified Chinese characters are the common factor among all Chinese people. No matter what dialect a person speaks, they can all read simplified Chinese characters.
Cultural Impact
Despite the fact that dialects separate and define distinct groups within China instead of uniting the country as a whole, they are also a living representation of China’s history and culture. A dialect can share a story about its region, its culture, and most importantly, its people. Many plays and dramas are often performed in a local dialect and widely supported and encouraged by the Chinese government. Also, many towns and cities have television dramas that use the local dialect to culturally identify with the local audience. Because speakers share a standard written form and have a common cultural heritage with long periods of political unity, Chinese dialects are popularly perceived among native speakers as variants of a single Chinese language; an idea also supported by the government. Preserving the culture of Chinese dialects is an important task that falls on the people, and it is the people who are taking actions to keep intact this culturally iconic aspect of China.
[1] http://www.gov.cn/english/laws/2005-09/19/content_64906.htm
