Which dialects are spoken in Glossika?

[Friday]

I read that Glossika comes in two different dialects, but none of the descriptions I read were very precise, as I'm aware Chinese has much variation so to say it is "Chinese" is not very meaningful.

 

Can anyone tell me the names that would used by linguists or the specific Chinese name of the dialects to describe the two versions? I want to use this information and compare it to some maps constructed by linguistics to help in deciding which set of audio to use.

[naijahusker]

If you are referring to the mandarin course, it comes in a Beijing version and Taiwan version.

[Flickserve]

Looking up the glossika website will give four dialects of Chinese.

[Lu]

I want to use this information and compare it to some maps constructed by linguistics to help in deciding which set of audio to use.

I don't think you need maps constructed by linguists to decide that.

 

The most commonly used version of Chinese is Mandarin (Putonghua, Guoyu). This is the official language of both China and Taiwan, and everyone living there learns this language in school.

Cantonese is spoken in Hong Kong and Guangdong. It's also a common language among overseas Chinese. Hong Kong has a prolific entertainment industry, so many popular movies are in Cantonese.

The main thing to consider in choosing which dialect to learn is: who do you want to talk to? If it's Chinese or Taiwanese people in general, Mandarin is the best choice. If you want to understand kung fu movies and order in your local Chinese restaurant, Cantonese might be a good idea. If you want to learn to talk to your in-laws, ask your partner what dialect they speak (and whether they perhaps are comfortable in Mandarin as well, in which case that might be a better option).

 

If your choice is between Chinese Mandarin and Taiwanese Mandarin, again, the main question is who you want to talk to, and also what other study materials you're using. To avoid confusing yourself with the small differences between the two, it's best to stick with one standard, at least for the first few years. The two varieties are almost the same, if you speak one, people speaking the other will understand you without a problem.

[Friday]

Is the dialect in the Taiwan version spoken in provinces in the south, such as Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi, that are across from Taiwan?

[gato]

Taiwan has three main dialects:

- Mandarin (guoyu), which is similar to putonghua

- Minnanhua (also referred to as Hokkien or Taiwanese), which is similar to the local dialect spoken in southern Fujian (especially Xiamen)

- Kejiahua (客家话 or Hakka)

[Flickserve]

Is the dialect in the Taiwan version spoken in provinces in the south, such as Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi, that are across from Taiwan?

you are being deliberately vague. Please state what dialect you are referring to.

From another post, you claim to already speak some Chinese. It is not helpful to anybody to refer to 'this dialect' or 'that dialect' when people are trying to give meaningful advice.

[Friday]

- Mandarin (guoyu), which is similar to putonghua

So, does the Taiwan version of this use this dialect or one of the other local Taiwan dialects?

[TheBigZaboon]

@Flickserve:

Aw, come on... Be nice.

Go beat up on the guy who thinks this forum is a Chinese-Korean sex therapy hangout...

[Chris Two Times]

the guy who thinks this forum is a Chinese-Korean sex therapy hangout...

 

LOL! 

 

minus twenty-one before getting locked!

 

Warm regards,

Chris Two Times

[Flickserve]

@Flickserve:

Aw, come on... Be nice.

Go beat up on the guy who thinks this forum is a Chinese-Korean sex therapy hangout...

To be honest, Lu and Gato wrote really nice replies and were stabbing in the dark because the OP seems to have some aversion to typing Mandarin/Putonghua.

There is also the glossika website (it's easy to find) and there is a thread on glossika and a discussion on the Taiwan/China versions of Mandarin in this forum. It's easy enough to find the answer to the topic title just by going to the Glossika homepage and searching for the languages available.

[Lu]

So, does the Taiwan version of this use this dialect or one of the other local Taiwan dialects?

I don't have Glossika, but surely it specifies what language (or dialect, whatever floats your boat) the different versions are in? There's Mandarin/Putonghua/Guoyu; there's Taiwanese/Hokkien/Taiyu/Hoklo; and there's Hakka/Kejiahua. I can't image any site or book or whatever would use terms more difficult than this.

 

For more information on what is spoken where, might I suggest Wikipedia? By all means come back here if you still have questions after that.

[Chris Two Times]

For more information on what is spoken where, might I suggest Wikipedia?

 

Indeed. It does seem that Wikipedia has a page for absolutely everything nowadays.

 

For starters, may I suggest...

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_China

 

That's a pretty good language map on that page.

 

Warm regards,

Chris Two Times