Arikah Map

List of Chinese dialects

Image:Map-Sinitic Languages.gif

The following is a list of Chinese dialects and languages.


Contents

Classification

Linguists classify these languages as the Sinitic branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. Within this broad classification, linguistics identify between seven and fourteen subgroups.

Tradition classification

Traditional Chinese classification lists seven groups, including:

• Gan
• Guan (Mandarin or Beifang)
• Kejia (Hakka)
• Min (including the Hokkien and Taiwanese variants)
• Wu
• Xiang
• Yue (Cantonese)

(shown here with the romanized Standard Mandarin names of the categories, ordered alphabetically).

Modern linguistic classification

James Matisoff's widely accepted classification includes:

Mandarin → Standard Mandarin
→ Jin
Wu → Shanghainese
→ Hui
Cantonese → Ping
Min → Taiwanese
Xiang
Hakka
Gan

Matisoff's list uses the common English names of the groups, ordered by decreasing number of speakers of languages within the group.

Ethnologue

The Ethnologue lists 14 language groups,[1] including:

Chinese, Gan (Gan)
Chinese, Hakka (Kejia)
Chinese, Huizhou (Hui)
Chinese, Jinyu (Jin)
Chinese, Mandarin (Mandarin)
Chinese, Min Bei (Min → Min Bei)
Chinese, Min Dong (Min → Min Dong)
Chinese, Min Nan (Min → Min Nan)
Chinese, Min Zhong (Min → Min Zhong)
Chinese, Pu-Xian (Min → Pu-Xian)
Chinese, Wu (Wu)
Chinese, Xiang (Xiang)
Chinese, Yue (Yue (Cantonese))
Dungan (Mandarin → Dungan)

See also Campbell's article on classifying Chinese dialects[2] and ChinaDC's chart of Sino-Tibetan languages.[3]

As the above categories illustrate, there are three common approaches to naming categories and languages in English:

The classification used here is a combination of the classifications given above.

Dialects and languages

In addition to the languages and dialects given below, it is customary to speak informally of languages and dialects belonging to each province, e.g. Sichuan dialect, Henan dialect. These designations do not always correspond to classifications used by linguists, but each nevertheless has approximate characteristics of its own.

The question of whether these should be called dialects or languages in their own right is particularly interesting in Chinese. On the one hand, the designation seems to be as much socio-political as linguistic, reflecting Max Weinreich's comment that "a language is a dialect with an army and a navy." Purely from a linguistic point of view, many of these idioms seem to meet the criteria of a language. On the other hand, to a large degree the various Chinese idioms share a common written language and literature, lending weight to calling them "dialects". Because the written language is grammatically closest to Standard Mandarin, many Chinese speakers view Standard Mandarin as "the Chinese language", and everything else as dialects.

Gan

(赣语/贛語)

Guan (Mandarin/Beifang)

(官话/官話 / 北方话/北方話)

Beijing Mandarin 北京官話

Ji Lu Mandarin 冀魯官話

Jianghuai Mandarin 江准官話

Jiao Liao Mandarin 膠遼官話

Lan Yin Mandarin 蘭銀官話

Northeast China Mandarin 东北官话/東北官話

Shandong Mandarin 山東話

Used informally to refer to either Ji Lu Mandarin, spoken in northwest Shandong or Zhongyuan Mandarin, spoken in the southwest.[4]

Southwestern Mandarin 西南官话/西南官話

Zhongyuan Mandarin 中原官話

Hui

(徽语/徽語)

Hui is sometimes considered a subcategory of Gan.

Jin

(晋语/晉語)

Jin is sometimes considered the ninth division of Mandarin (Guan/Beifang).

Kejia (Hakka)

(客家話)

Min

(闽语/閩語)

Min Bei 闽北语

(Northern Min)

Min Dong 闽东语

(Eastern Min)

Min Nan 闽南语/閩南語

(Southern Min)

Min Zhong 闽中语

(Central Min)

Pu Xian

Qiong Wen 瓊文片

Shao Jiang

Ping

(平话/平話)

Pinghua is sometimes considered a subset of Cantonese (Yue).

Wu

(吴语/吳語)

Taihu division 太湖片

Taizhou division 婺州片

Oujiang division

Wuzhou division

Chu Qu division

Xuanzhou division

Xiang

(湘语/湘語)

Chang Yi division

Lou Shao division

Chen Xu division

Yue (Cantonese)

(粵語/粤语)

Yue Hai division 粤海片/粵海片

Guan Bao division 莞寶片

Luoguang division 罗岗片/羅崗片

Seiyap division (Siyi) 四邑片

Gouyeung division 高阳片/高陽片

Gwainaam division (Cancerese) 桂南片

Mouchyun dialect 武川話

Danjia dialect 蜑家話

Unclassified

See also


[edit]Chinese: spoken varieties 
Categories:

Gan | Hakka | Hui | Jin | Mandarin | Min | Ping | Xiang | Wu | Cantonese
Danzhouhua | Shaozhou Tuhua

Subcategories of Min: Min Bei | Min Dong | Min Nan | Min Zhong | Puxian | Qiongwen | Shaojiang
Subcategories of Mandarin: Northeastern | Beijing | Ji-Lu | Jiao-Liao | Zhongyuan | Lan-Yin | Southwestern | Jianghuai | Dungan
Note: The above is only one classification scheme among many.
The categories in italics are not universally acknowledged to be independent categories.
Comprehensive list of Chinese dialects
Official spoken varieties: Standard Mandarin | Standard Cantonese
Historical phonology: Old Chinese | Middle Chinese | Proto-Min | Proto-Mandarin | Haner
Chinese: written varieties
Official written varieties: Classical Chinese | Vernacular Chinese
Other varieties: Written Vernacular Cantonese


References

  1. ^ Ethnologue report for Chinese. Retrieved on 2006-09-04.
  2. ^ James Campbell. Chinese Dialect Classification. Glossika. Retrieved on 2006-08-30. Includes descriptions of the dialects spoken in over 2,500 cities and counties in China. Includes interactive map.
  3. ^ Linguistic chart of Sino-Tibetan Languages. ChineseDC.com. Retrieved on 2006-08-30. In Chinese.
  4. ^ See Shandong#Culture

Categories


Chinese dialects | Chinese language | Sino-Tibetan languages

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