And so the mandarisation of HK begins

[SirNotAppearing]

Map of Chinese dialects.

[hullexile]

So it begs the question: why is it dwindling? Is it whokly the government’s fault or is it also the parents who are to blame ? I have seen the same situation in ither cultures whwre the parents dont speak with their children in their original tongue while young and then lament later on why their kids dont speak their language

No not the government but the reasons I gave before plus as you say parents, especially middle class parents who see that in terms of getting on then the local language is not important. There is also a constant flow of people coming in who do not speak the local language and have no incentive to do so.

All of these things do or could apply to Cantonese. But if you then throw in government encouragement for Mandarin the process will be accelerated. That is a political decision.

[Gatts]

For me rhe point is: HK has always been part of China. And therefore it makes sense that the chinese standard language is propagated if only because you need also to communicate with your countrymen.

One shouldn't go to the expense of the other. There are many countries in the world where different languages are spoken. Just look at Switzerland or Canada.

Every subgroup also has its own set of culture other than the overall culture of thr country. Where I grew up there are customs and traditions which even in China is not practiced anymore. But does it mean the government erased it or is it simply because the younger folks realy dont peactice them anymore?

Everywhere is different, in Guangzhou we can clearly see it is government-induced.

Whybis it that incertain westen countries it is alright to teach english as a medium of communication as a country but if its Putonghua it is a problem?

Can't think of a western country where suddenly Mandarin would become the language of instruction.

Why is it assumed to be forced when its Putonghua but when it is english it isnt? Wasnt english also forced down the locals’ throats when the Brirish took over? Its wrong then?

In pre-1997 HK Cantonese was still the language of instruction in local schools etc.

Am not even trying to be a patriot per se but it is about logic

Exactly, it's your logic that needs work first and foremost.

[Gatts]

Map of Chinese dialects.

Should be called "languages" in order to be correct.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-Tibetan_languages

[newhkpr]

For me rhe point is: HK has always been part of China.

Am not even trying to be a patriot per se

Uhuh. Yea.

[SirNotAppearing]

Should be called "languages" in order to be correct.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-Tibetan_languages

Thanks. Yes, these are not at all understandable as simply dialects. Not even as close as Portuguese and Spanish.

[paddylast]

Too much is made of preserving endangered languages. The fewer languages we have the more able we are to communicate.

Take India for example. It's an absolute mess of languages and just puts barriers up between communities, adds to general chaos, and makes a mockery of their education system.

[Mirindix]

I absolutely love the good patriots we have on this forum nowadays

Getting a bit tired to commenting on the same old kindergarten whining but: the amount of time you waste on venting your frustrations (and stink) about China on an internet forum you could have already spent learning the language and probably advance your career like some/ many locals and even non-Chinese do And while making a big fuss about Putonghua, even Cantonese you don't speak either... so what's the whole point?

[hullexile]

Getting a bit tired to commenting on the same old kindergarten whining but: the amount of time you waste on venting your frustrations (and stink) about China on an internet forum you could have already spent learning the language and probably advance your career like some/ many locals and even non-Chinese do And while making a big fuss about Putonghua, even Cantonese you don't speak either... so what's the whole point?

Only two smileys, feeling depressed?

[Mirindix]

The smileys are almost becoming my trade mark, seems I'm deep on your mind

The third smiley I save for those addicted to spending precious lifetime on pointless discussions and whining