Cantonese

Spoken in

• Sino Tibetan languages Chinese languages

Zh (Chinese Language )

Yue, zho ( macro language, Chinese languages)

The Cantonese language (Chinese广东话/广东话, Pinyin Guǎngdōnghuà, kant. Gwóngdūngwah ) or Yue (Chinese粤语/粤语, Pinyin Yuèyǔ, kant. Yuhtyúh ) is a Chinese language or a dialect of the Chinese language, especially in the South Chinese is spoken.

• 4.1 morphology
• 4.2 syntax

Dissemination

Cantonese is in Guangxi, Wuzhou and in large parts of Guangdong Province (including Canton, therefore Cantonese ) speaking. An exception is the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. Here is spoken because of the very high proportion of immigrants from the south-eastern parts of China mainly Mandarin ( standard Chinese ). In the two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao will also speak Cantonese.

Furthermore, the third largest Chinese language is spoken, among other things of expatriate minorities in Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.

Phonetics

Yue agrees structural- linguistic largely consistent with the usual standard Chinese, but differs from it considerably in pronunciation in the lexicon and in the grammar. The most striking difference in pronunciation is that syllables with closure sounds can end (eg, Sun Yat-sen, Pak Choi ).

Tones

Cantonese is a tonal language. Here different tones you Yam (high Chinese yin ) and Yèuhng ( high Chinese Yang ). Yam tones are high, Yèuhng tones are deep. The deep tones are featured in the Yale Romanization by h, which is appended to the vowel. There are three yam and three Yèuhng tones. These differ in Tonverlauf. Furthermore, three entry tones are distinguished which can be derived from three of the yam and Yèuhng tones and are therefore not regarded as distinctive.

Various dialects of Yue differ in some properties of the tonal system. Thus, the yin ping tone (阴平) in Guangzhou to the variants 53 and 55, while in Hong Kong the contour prevails 55. Also diachronic changes play a role; then the contour of the Yin - Shang tone (阴 上) has changed in the 20th century by 35 by 25.

The Chinese linguist Zhao Yuanren has developed a system to remember the tones. He divided the pitch into five levels, with 5 being the highest and 1 the lowest tone is. The change in tone can be represented by a concatenation of the numbers ( clay molds ). Therefore, the sounds of Cantonese can be characterized by a respective pair of numbers as follows:

So a precise distinction comes to 9 tones; the entry tones (No. 7-9; Tonverlauf 5, 4 ​​and 3 respectively) but are only the abbreviated versions of the 1st, 3rd and 6th tone ( course 53/55, 44 or 33). These sounds are spoken when a syllable ends in consonant (-p, -k,- t).

Relation to the four tones in standard Chinese

With knowledge of the sound of Cantonese reading of a character can be the sound of the Mandarin reading clearly derived:

1-1身,心,张,生,妈,工...

2-3早,体,好,小,姐,许...

3-4课,再,见,姓,性,贵...

4-2晨,陈,婷,梁,同,原...

5-3你,有,我,领,老,友...

6-4第,二,部,分,问,候...

The vast majority of Mandarin tones can be so derived. But you have to make sure that it is a standard reading in Cantonese reading, as some characters can change the sound when they are used alone or in an unknown composition in Mandarin. Deviations from the above rule are also to be expected if the reading contains a plosive, because the number of possible sounds is limited in the presence of a closure Loud on only three. The conversion scheme is then almost randomly. You might then provide only statistical tendencies:

1 - 1, 4, 2一,级,室,筑,足,急

3-4, 2, 3隔,洁,雪...

6-4, 2学,属,杰,达,实,服,白,薄

Note change

Any sound can be converted under certain circumstances in a second, sometimes in a first sound. This phenomenon is called变 音binjām. Binyēm can have the following functions:

1 mark of specially Cantonese use of a word, about the single use where it would not be possible in Mandarin:

台子toi2 zi2 → 台(台) toi4

名字ming4 Zi6 → 名meng2

Second distinction of verbs and nouns:

画画waak6 waa2

话 话waa6 waa2

3 creation of intimacy, such as names of family members, or even names:

屋企uk1 kei5 * 2

老母lou5 mou5 * 2

外 母ngoi6 mou5 * 2

孙女syun1 neoi5 * 2

侄女zat6 neoi5 * 2

女neoi5 * 2

姊妹(姐妹) zi2 mui6 * 2

表 姐妹biu2 ze2 mui6 * 2

<量>位wei6 * 2

姑丈gu1 zoeng6 * 2

舅 丈kau5 zoeng6 * 2

姨丈JI4 zoeng6 * 2

雪 妹syut3 mui6 * 2 (Name )

A special conversion scheme we have at the Verdopplungswortern:

1 1 → 4 1

爸爸Baa1 Baa1 * 4

妈妈maa1 * 4 maa1

哥哥go1 * 4 go1

4 4 6 6 4 2 →

婆婆po4 po4 * 2

弟弟dai6 * 4 * 2 dai6

妹妹mui6 * 4 * 2 mui6

...

In Mandarin, there is also a change in tone in these words: The second syllable simply loses its tone.

Choice of words

The written language and vocal language is the same for Chinese languages ​​in word choice and grammar in general either Mandarin or classical Chinese. However, there are also mixed forms.

Structure

The structure of the Yue dialects is very similar to that of other modern Chinese languages. Therefore, the following section presents only some of the characteristics that mark the Yue.

Morphology

人 客jan4 haak3 human host = " host: A characteristic morphological feature that distinguishes the Yue dialects from other Chinese languages ​​, the order of the components in some compound words, where the head is not at the end but the beginning: Cantonese "; high Chinese:客人Keren guest - man = " guest".

Syntax

The Yue measure words used not only in noun phrases, which are determined by Numerals or a demonstrative, but applies it also to the determination:

In some cases, the word order in the Yue of the other Chinese languages ​​differs. Thus, certain adverbs not before but after the verb, in contrast to the northern forms of Chinese addition is the direct object before the indirect object:

Umschriftsysteme

With Yale Romanization, Jyutping and others, there are transcriptions of the Cantonese transliteration into Latin characters for.