Cris wrote:
1. Cantonese is a much older and much purer Chinese language than Mandarin
4. Cantonese rhymes with ancient Chinese poems especially with Tang poems
5. Cantonese retains many ancient words/vocabulary of ancient Chinese language
9. Cantonese is the only language among Chinese that is close to ancient Chinese and have official status
While being a staunch supporter of Cantonese, I must say that an old language is not necessarily superior to a modern language. We can’t say that old Latin is better than modern Italian.
As an older language, Cantonese is closer to Middle Chinese and rhymes closer with Tang poems. This attribute should be appreciated by students and scholars of ancient Chinese languages.
Hong Kong is the only place that Cantonese has an official status.
2. Cantonese was the native dialect spoken by Sun Yat Sen father of modern China
This statement implies that great and influential personages are not confined to Mandarin speakers. They can also be founded in Guangdong province.
3. Cantonese have 6-9 tones while Mandarin has only 4 tones
Actually this statement should be rephrased like this: Cantonese has 6 tones plus 3 clipped sounds (sounds that end with /p,t,k/) while Mandarin has only 5 tones (4 basic + 1 neutral) without clipped sounds.
Consequently, there are about 625 legitimate sounds and 1,761 syllables in the entire Cantonese vocabulary. On the other hand, Mandarin has only 403 sounds and therefore has many more homophonous characters than Cantonese.
6. Cantonese can express themselves better than Mandarin
7. Cantonese when written is more difficult but perfect for communication and instant chatroom
These 2 statements are true to a certain extent. Generally speaking, Cantonese can express themselves vividly with much fewer words or syllables than Mandarin.
1. Cantonese is a much older and much purer Chinese language than Mandarin
4. Cantonese rhymes with ancient Chinese poems especially with Tang poems
5. Cantonese retains many ancient words/vocabulary of ancient Chinese language
9. Cantonese is the only language among Chinese that is close to ancient Chinese and have official status
While being a staunch supporter of Cantonese, I must say that an old language is not necessarily superior to a modern language. We can’t say that old Latin is better than modern Italian.
As an older language, Cantonese is closer to Middle Chinese and rhymes closer with Tang poems. This attribute should be appreciated by students and scholars of ancient Chinese languages.
Hong Kong is the only place that Cantonese has an official status.
2. Cantonese was the native dialect spoken by Sun Yat Sen father of modern China
This statement implies that great and influential personages are not confined to Mandarin speakers. They can also be founded in Guangdong province.
3. Cantonese have 6-9 tones while Mandarin has only 4 tones
Actually this statement should be rephrased like this: Cantonese has 6 tones plus 3 clipped sounds (sounds that end with /p,t,k/) while Mandarin has only 5 tones (4 basic + 1 neutral) without clipped sounds.
Consequently, there are about 625 legitimate sounds and 1,761 syllables in the entire Cantonese vocabulary. On the other hand, Mandarin has only 403 sounds and therefore has many more homophonous characters than Cantonese.
6. Cantonese can express themselves better than Mandarin
7. Cantonese when written is more difficult but perfect for communication and instant chatroom
These 2 statements are true to a certain extent. Generally speaking, Cantonese can express themselves vividly with much fewer words or syllables than Mandarin.