The Value of the Chinese Language

[hisashiluv14]

Not sure if this topic has been started before. If it has, feel free to lock. :D

Recently in Singapore, there has been some discussion about the value of the Chinese language, arising from some changes to education policies that now allow students who are weak in Chinese to take an easier and less demanding course (Singaporeans would know it as the Chinese B syllabus). My concern isn't really about that though, or I would've started this in the Singapore forum. The thing is, there were letters written in to the local English daily, and a lot of them place an economical value on Chinese, saying that Chinese is important because of China's emerging presence as a world super power, and that we would have to do business with China in the future, and thus we would need Chinese to communicate with them.

Personally, I think that's bull. I may not be the most convincing exponent of Chinese as I can't even say what I'm about to type in Chinese without sounding like an ang moh (Caucasian), but trust me when I say that I AM, despite everything, fiercely proud of my language and culture and I would defend it to death. For me, it's race over country, no matter what the government tries to indoctrinate into me. Of course, I love my fellow countrymen as well, but I'm inherently Chinese and only Singaporean by circumstance. And if things were different, I wouldn't even be typing this now as I wouldn't even know English, but that's another story which I shan't delve into right now.

My point is, I think the value of Chinese goes so much deeper than just "business with China". In fact, placing such a cheap and superficial value on Chinese is demeening the deep cultural and historical significance of the language and it's even insulting as well, if we want to take it to that point. We expect a person of a certain heritage to know his language, and this is not "pigeon-holing" that person according to his skin colour as suggested by some crazy nut who wrote in to the papers (he even called it 'racism' - what the hell). I mean, it's your culture, it's your language, it's your heritage, it's something you inherited from your ancestors and would pass down to your descendents, and if you don't uphold it, who will?

I didn't think Chinese was important before. When I was 13, 14, 15, I thought I could get by by simply being proficient in the English language. But now it's obvious that I was wrong. I want to improve my Chinese not because I'm thinking of working in China in the future (YEAH RIGHT!), not because I want to effectively communicate with Jielun when I meet him (double YEAH RIGHT!), but because I feel that it's my responsibility as a Chinese to know my language. And I regret not realising this earlier, for if I had, I wouldn't be as pathetic as I am now when it comes to speaking and writing in Chinese.

Now, this forum is frequented by many people from many different countries. For the Chinese people residing in non-Asian countries, what are your thoughts on this? Do we study Chinese only because of China's emerging market? Or do we do it for other reasons?

And for the non-Chinese who are interested in learning, why do you want to do it (besides wanting to be able to understand and sing Jielun's lyrics :))?

In short, what are your thoughts?

[lene]

We expect a person of a certain heritage to know his language, and this is not "pigeon-holing" that person according to his skin colour as suggested by some crazy nut who wrote in to the papers (he even called it 'racism' - what the hell). I mean, it's your culture, it's your language, it's your heritage, it's something you inherited from your ancestors and would pass down to your descendents, and if you don't uphold it, who will?

I feel that it's my responsibility as a Chinese to know my language.


Amen to that! I have exactly the same sentiments. I'm an overseas Chinese from the Philippines. It's quite sad because what's predominantly spoken here are the dialects (Cantonese and Fookienese). Mandarin is only learned in school, in subjects such as math (though they scrapped it out of the curriculum of some Chinese schools round 20 yrs ago), literature and reading comprehension. Unfortunately, the language is also not used in daily conversation. Plus, most of the students get by by simply memorizing the characters. After the examinations, the lessons, too are forgotten. It's a pity that of all the Chinese people living in this country, only a handful can speak and write the language -- and most of them are the old folks.

Personally, I feel it's a shame for any Chinese who couldn't even speak the language (although some circumstances are really beyond our control, such as parents not passing the language on to the kids).

I'm 100% Cantonese so I speak the dialect at home. I learned Fookien while growing up with Fookienese kids (90% of all the Chinese here are Fookienese; while only 10% are Cantonese). I studied in an English primary school and later to a Chinese high school. I've only been exposed to the language during my 4 year stay in high school and during summer school in Taiwan, but I've felt and realized the need to learn the language because it's part of my culture and heritage, and consequently, my identity. Since then, learning the Chinese language and culture became my passion -- it still is. I'm still not the best Mandarin speaker around, but through my own efforts, I was able to learn and master the language. Now, I'm very proud to be teaching Mandarin to fellow Overseas Chinese who do not know the language. :)

I hope all other Chinese from countries such as Singapore and Malaysia realize how truly truly fortunate they are to be exposed to the language early on in their lives. We Overseas Chinese from the Phils are not as lucky as you guys.

[scarletwillow]

Chinese living in USA...

Fully agree with the above... been trying to pass this sentiment to the Chinese around me, but they're pretty much "lost" -_-

That's one thing foreigners in countries like the USA will never understand. Some people *want* to keep their culture. Not everyone is happy to be Americanized. And unfortunately, wanting to retain a cultural identity means people telling you to "go back to your own country" (I gladly will).

[moonsilk]

To me Chinese is a language that worth really a lot...
I love to speak in mAndarin....becos i feel that the use of the language can be more powerful and emotional than English....
Personally i dun learn chinese becos of China...why shd we learn chinese becos of them,when they are also learning english to trade with the westerners?
Hmmm....i feel that Chinese B is introduced to allow more people to get hold of chinese...in the sense that its good cos we can learn at our own pace....
However...i feel that students shd not be too dependant on English translations to chinese as it will not be an useful form of learning....

[tortilla_chips]

i think the chinese language is part of our culture and it's special. part of it is cos its our own langauge and the other part is tt it's the only language which is derived from cavemen drawings. so if we want 2 understand our own heritage, we must have a good command of the language 1st (or at least know it).......it's something our ancestors have left 4 us (sort of lyk a family heirloom, eh?), so we should preserve it. cos i dun think anyone of us would wan our children or grandchildren 2 lose something we hold dear 2 our hearts tt we have given them. many chinese in sg look down on those who are more proficient in chinese than in english cos they think tt english is "cooler" and it makes them feel civilized and sophisticated. actually, we chinese were the ones who invented gunpowder, paper and compasses, so tt should make those of us who speak chinese feel superior yeah? :D

[Vant]

I hope you guys know that Manderin is the most spoken language in the world... (1st Language)

And I agree that people who have chinese in their blood should take some time to learn it... It expands your mind and when you think you can do it with both languages! ;p

"Omg that girl is hot"
"Hau kou ai!!!"

... uh... went to far :x ;p

[Calcifer10000]

:) I think it's great this topic was started and I agree with what people've said here. I'm Chinese, born and living in the USA in a state where there aren't a lot of Chinese people, compared to say, New York or California. My parents (wisely) chose to teach/speak Mandarin at home, unlike some of my peers, whose parents worried they wouldn't be able to learn English, and so didn't let them speak Chinese at all. :depresse: Now they hardly know how to say anything, and I feel like they've lost something important and precious, which I'm trying not to lose myself. :glug:

Chinese movies and music are what made me realize how handy having a reasonable grasp of Mandarin is. I've watched a TON of movies/serials now and lately have been trying to better know the Chinese music scene. It's part of being who I am, and it's a lot more than just business and money. I mean, for example, I often feel unexplainably closer to a stranger who's Chinese than a Caucasian friend; it's also a great feeling to be able to speak Chinese with them. It's not that I want to be biased, but I can't seem to help it.

(Annoyingly) people ask me a lot, do I consider myself Chinese or American. As if I can really say for sure. But I can hardly say I'm Chinese if I can't speak/read/write well. :blush: I'm now taking Chinese classes to improve my Mandarin, and reading and understanding Jay's lyrics is also really helping me improve! :wink2:

[cackt]

chinese B is for students who can't pass the normal standard chinese..altho this will help those who are interested to learn,but i think other students will just fail this subject simply becos they have no interest at all...no matter how simple is the new chinese B...unless u're smart..aha..

[Kakkyo]

I may not be truly Chinese, but my roots trace to the Chinese [Yip] family... My grandfather (Father's side) is the family historian and knows about our lineage... He knows perfect Cantonese and Mandarin as well as the many styles of Chinese calligraphy.

From him, I've been learning about my ancestors from the ones during the feudal days that only romantic novels speak of to the more modern era members. I have been taught a lot of the proverbs, legends and poems from him in addition as under his tutelage for calligraphy.

To me, even though I am not Chinese blooded, I feel that I should understand both my Vietnamese and Chinese.

[Lai Cheng Hung]

I think Chinese Language is a great at all since the Chinese characters are so unique and meaningful.

[Chun Li]

Hisashi, you've expressed eloquently my thoughts exactly. All the VIPs and my group members know that I am working in China, and to tell you the truth, had I not known how to speak and write this language I wouldn't have lasted a day in this country. My perspectives on what I've learned from the people here would have been seen from a foreigners eyes. THAT is pathetic.

Being able to understand language is like a window into culture. Language is the origin of your heritage, your people, your country, your culture. What a waste it is for those people who don't realize what they are losing by not being interested in the land that born, raised, and gave life to their parents and ancestors.

[bee]

i agree with everyone above. i love being able to communicate in a different language. especially one that is so ancient and has such a huge background. i used to dismiss my culture and language, but for the past 2 years i really value what i know and wonder how i ever thought the way i did.i'm actually ashamed of how i was.

the thing i love the most about the chinese language is that you NEVER stop learning more. and plus you can use one character for another word, and create a whole new meaning, and i think its really amazing---especially since one word alone can have several meanings all at once. (atleast thats how it seems to me)

before i couldnt even speak to my grandparents, and im glad i can now, because theres so much they can teach me and so much i wish to learn.

[rosiean86]

Kudos for your views on this matter, hisashiluv14. Everyone should be proud of their culture and know how to speak their native language. I'm ashamed on how little Chinese I know. I mean...I can communicate with my relatives, and can write and read some (thanks to attempting to read Jay's lyrics haha) but there is so much that I don't know. When I was little, my biggest wish was to not be Chinese, because I was surronded by white people all the time, and I hated to be different. Now I wish I had paid attention in Chinese school, and when my mom was teaching me, but most especially I'm sad that I've only been back to my home country so few times. Now that I've matured and realized how much I love Chinese culture, it's too late. I mean, I can still learn, but if I had tried more when I was a child, I could have been fluent. Even so, I'm still doing what I can to learn. :happy:

[loko]

I can definitely relate to what everyone here is saying. I'm also chinese in a western country, and although i can speak indonesian relatively well (compared to cousins and family friends living in western countries) I have only recently come to value the importance of chinese. I plan to study chinese this year at uni, but i wish i had learnt it when i was younger so i don't have to waste time and money at uni to learn some of my own cultural inheritance. i won't lie to you guys though, i am pretty materialistic as well and one of reasons motivating me to learn chinese is because of china's, and asia in general, economical rise in the world. I want to travel and work in different countries during my life, and learning chinese will enable me to do so more effectively.
don't get me wrong though, my initial reasons for wanting to learn chinese is the same as you guys - i just never realised what i was missing out on.

[syzygy]

Good post.

Apparently if you can't speak your native langauge...ie...if you're ABC(American Born Chinese) and you can't speak your language when you go back to China...you look REALLY bad.

Either way...it really is your duty to learn your native language and culture...thank god my parents put me through Chinese school, which I ironically just dropped...(s'all good...im taking it at the college spring quarter...at least i hope so) people should take pride in being what they are...if you don't...it also looks really bad...and you look really stupid...and you'd probably feel pretty bad too...

China will probably be a strong part of the world market in the future, with one of the largest populations, you will have to learn the language regardless of whether or not english is the universal language...

regardless of this economy thing...all the hot/cute/smart/sweet girls that i like are of chinese if not of asian descent...even though this is just appearance...asian boy/asian girl just looks good in my eyes for some reason...and well...if my gf can speak my native tongue or if i can speak her native tongue...all the better...ya gotta impress the in laws :-P

[Chun Li]

It's interesting how some of us here consider that learning Chinese should be one's duty. I know a lot of people that would resent what we say... they think they're duty is to live their life, not to learn a language about a country they don't know anything about, even if their parents did come from there. I, of course, think that it is definately a DUTY.

[jmin13]

i tink chinese lang. is a very impt subject to be learn..It is needed in some countries and may come in very useful in hand...but can see tat English has become a very impt lang. in singapore than chinese..Is like ratio of Eng : Chinese is 3:2..every 5 families 3 speak Eng than chinese..

[jakinni]

Great topic hisashi!

I really agree with everyone's sentiments. I immigrated to Canada when I was 8 and am very thankful that I can still speak, read, and write Chinese today, although not as fluently as I would like. Although I can communicate perfectly fine in everyday conversations in Mandarin and can read well enough to do some of the translations for this forum, I feel that due to lack of practice, other than talking to my parents, that if I wanted to communicate deeper thoughts, the right words don't always come to me naturally, same with writing. I can read pretty well, maybe a bit slower than English, but if you wanted me to write, I would have hard time recalling a lot of words simply due to lack of practice. Even though I do some have Mandarin speaking friends, we're just so used to communicating in English that talking regularly in Mandarin would seem unnatural. I really wish I had some Mandarin speaking friends growing up.

It's interesting how some of us here consider that learning Chinese should be one's duty. I know a lot of people that would resent what we say... they think they're duty is to live their life, not to learn a language about a country they don't know anything about, even if their parents did come from there. I, of course, think that it is definately a DUTY.

I also think it is a duty. My boyfriend was born here in Canada and although he can probably speak Cantonese more fluently than I can speak Mandarin since he had a lot of Cantonese friends growing up, his knowledge of written Chinese is very limited. This makes me very sad because being Chinese is not just eating Chinese food at home, but about knowing and being proud about your heritage. Language is a big part, if not the biggest, of the Chinese culture and how can he truly appreciate the beauty of the language, it's structure, flow, and the true meanings it conveys that often get lost in translation, without knowing how to read? Or how about reading menus at Chinese restaurants or understand eloquent idioms? And the only way to share some of my beloved TV serials with him would have to be through English translations where so much is lost. I feel almost angry at his parents at not having thought it was important enough to force him to learn it while he was young. It's such a sad part of westernization. Even he himself now really regrets not having taken it seriously while young, saying how he would be embarrassed at making his kids learn Chinese in the future if he doesn't even master it himself. I almost feel that it's my personal responsibility to get him learning more Chinese, at least the basics.

It makes me mad the number of people I see that have no interest in their own language or culture. All they care about are the superficial things, and there are many, of western life that they are totally blind to their heritage. It also makes me wonder WHY aren't they more interested? Don't they feel proud of the history and traditions that are so distinctly Chinese? I'm much more interested in learning about Chinese history than boring Canadian history that I feel no connection to. Isn't it almost an innate thing to want to know about one's people's past and present?

Although in countries like Canada and USA, it's become really politically correct to say that it doesn't matter where you're from, it's not really true because one's identity can't part ways with one's ethnic background. Being Chinese or French or whatever means that you are different. Language is something that sets you apart as well as groups you in with others. It is one of the most innate things that people use to identify with others.

Not recognizing language's importance is basically a disrespect to your whole cultural background. What a waste of being Chinese if you're not going to know Chinese.

[hisashiluv14]

Thanks everyone for your responses. :)

It's interesting how some of us here consider that learning Chinese should be one's duty. I know a lot of people that would resent what we say...

That's true. During the debate over this topic that prompted me to start this thread, some Singaporean guy wrote in to the papers and made a really caustic comment that basically said that forcing people of a certain ethnicity to learn their native language is "pigeon-holing" people according to their skin colour. He even called it "racism". AND he's Chinese.

It just goes to show that you don't need to live in a Western country to be Westernised. I don't even need to cite the example of that letter writer above; I myself am a great example of an almost-completely Westernised Chinese. I think a lot of it has to do with the environment in which one grows up, so that your command of a language is shaped by your peers and your every day life. I went to a school in which the majority of the students spoke English, nevermind that my primary and secondary school (went to the same darn school for ten years) was one of the few schools in Singapore designated to preserve the Chinese culture and language. Our school song is in Chinese, and in my batch, there was only one non-Chinese student. Yet, all my friends spoke English, hardly anyone I was close to spoke Mandarin and a lot of the people I knew was only mediocre in writing and reading at best.

What is really, really ironic about my situation is that my dad is Taiwanese. Pure Taiwanese. Prides himself on being Chinese, and he's a total genius at the language. I speak Mandarin at home but my English is way better anyway. And I only started learning English when I was seven, while I grew up speaking Mandarin.

And so there's this great sense of loss nowadays that I'm feeling regarding this. And what bites me everytime is the knowledge that I'll never be able to express all that I've typed and the fierce, if ironic, pride I have for my culture, race and heritage in Chinese.

*shrugs*

[XIII Dizzy]

Having immigrated to United States when I was in third grade, and having a father who was a Humanities major, I can speak and read Chinese fluently (Mandarin). To my disappointment I've discovered that my writing skills have deteriorated over time. While back in China I used to win awards for my essays and short stories, now I can barely write letters to my father without flipping a dictionary anymore. However, I still read Chinese novels and newspapers constantly.

I don't see learning Chinese as a duty. Even though people are constantly saying you should stay true to your roots, if a child feels no attachment to his culture despite abundant exposure to it and doesn't consider himself Chinese, then I see no reason for him to be forced to learn the language. However, if he does identify with Chinese culture, I don't see why he would not want to learn by his own accord. It's a beautiful language, especially if you read ancient Chinese poems. And I remain forever grateful that my parents gave me a classical education (ink painting, calligraphy, etc.) while I was younger so I could appreciate my roots.

-farfie-

[Dong Feng Puo]

call me biased, but i think chinese is definitely one of the most amazing languages. why is it amazing? it's a 5000 year old evolution chinese ppl can't live a single day without. its complexity is hardly rivaled by any other languages. it's beautiful in its every variation- whether it'd be a dialect or a different form of writing (ie calligraphy vs simplified or what not)... i'm super thankful that my parents made me go to three years of elementary in taiwan so i would know how to write/read... SO thankful. i feel truly blessed to be fluent in the language. xP

[Chun Li]

I don't see learning Chinese as a duty. Even though people are constantly saying you should stay true to your roots, if a child feels no attachment to his culture despite abundant exposure to it and doesn't consider himself Chinese, then I see no reason for him to be forced to learn the language. However, if he does identify with Chinese culture, I don't see why he would not want to learn by his own accord. It's a beautiful language, especially if you read ancient Chinese poems. And I remain forever grateful that my parents gave me a classical education (ink painting, calligraphy, etc.) while I was younger so I could appreciate my roots.

-farfie-

But if you learned all this calligraphy and everything as a child, wouldn't you naturally feel a closeness to the culture? Do you personally say that you don't feel attachment to Chinese culture or are you just saying that in general?

[meemaw]

i'm chinese but i didnt get the opportunity to learn to speak/write chinese in a formal school because my parents moved to south america when they were young, and then later on, we moved to the united states..however, now i'm trying to learn as much about the chinese language as possible because i feel its value and how useful it could be..not only that, but yes, i do feel that it is my duty to know the chinese language so that i can pass it on to the next generation because that is my heritage..a few years ago, my grandfather tried to teach me, my sister, brother, and cousins how to write in chinese, but..we didnt appreciate his hard work, so he gave up. now that i'm older, i actually know its value and respect it..except that it would take me longer to learn it because it's easier to learn things when you're younger.

[smilepiggy]

hahas, i guess chinese hold the same importance to me as it is for english because i take both languagaes as my ifrst languages... but chinese is the first language i learn since my family mostly speaks in chinese. :D

[JenJensen05]

I am not Chinese, but I study the Chinese language and I plan on majoring in it in college. I do study it partly because it is important in business and politics, but that is definitely not the main reason. I study because I deeply love the Chinese culture, with its simplicity and modesty and tradition. As I have studied its great history and talked with Chinese people, I have really come to understand a lot of the beliefs they hold, both political and otherwise, that are so different from American beliefs, and that understanding has led to a true appreciation. Studying Chinese allows me to enter in to Chinese culture and be a part of it. And even more than that, I love writing it, I love speaking it, and I love hearing people speak in Chinese. There is something beautiful about the language itself, even when set apart from the people who speak it. Somehow it's simply a great language. And on a lighter note, guys who speak Mandarin are SOOO sexy. My ex-boyfriend was from Nanjing and when he spoke Chinese, !!!!!! WOW!

[wonnage]

Chinese just seems to be richer in meaning. 院子落葉跟我的思念厚厚一疊, to take a line from qi li xiang (yuan zi luo ye gen wo de si nian hou hou yi die). It's not just that translating into english loses a lot of inherent meaning - "a thick pile of fallen leaves in the backyard together with my memories", it takes some disgusting sentence structure to convey the same idea. You say a lot more with a lot less. We have a lot of ABCs at our school, and though the majority are mature enough to appreciate chinese (you can understand songs and TV shows! wow) there's still the MTV crowd that just sits home watching MTV and other "cool" things. you know them..."what? you type in chinese? loser."

[wkhwa]

Basically, Chinese is one of the most widely used languages in the world. In the next few decades, the chinese language will be used throughout the world just like English. China is opening up it's doors to foreign trade, and some foreigners learn the language to communicate with chinese businessman. However, in my opinion, english will still remain as the international language for a long, long time...

Heres something private, I study in a private chinese school but still fail the chinese exam. Why? It is not because I'm weak in it, but our teachers asked us to memorize a lot of names and themes.

[SimpleBlackHumor89]

i agree with ^^ chinese will be one of the dominant languages in a coupla years.. thats what i tried telln my mom, to let me take a chiense class in hs, but she said SPANISH... i think there are more chinese than any other ethnicities

but i really wanna be fluent in chinese. i can talk fluently, but reading and writing is another thing... but like now days.. for writing the words. they're are easier versions.. i always tend to write the harder way cos i think they look prettier than the modern simpler kind.

how do you guys write

[cinnabunni]

Amen to that! I have exactly the same sentiments. I'm an overseas Chinese from the Philippines. It's quite sad because what's predominantly spoken here are the dialects (Cantonese and Fookienese). Mandarin is only learned in school, in subjects such as math (though they scrapped it out of the curriculum of some Chinese schools round 20 yrs ago), literature and reading comprehension. Unfortunately, the language is also not used in daily conversation. Plus, most of the students get by by simply memorizing the characters. After the examinations, the lessons, too are forgotten. It's a pity that of all the Chinese people living in this country, only a handful can speak and write the language -- and most of them are the old folks.

Personally, I feel it's a shame for any Chinese who couldn't even speak the language (although some circumstances are really beyond our control, such as parents not passing the language on to the kids).

I'm 100% Cantonese so I speak the dialect at home. I learned Fookien while growing up with Fookienese kids (90% of all the Chinese here are Fookienese; while only 10% are Cantonese). I studied in an English primary school and later to a Chinese high school. I've only been exposed to the language during my 4 year stay in high school and during summer school in Taiwan, but I've felt and realized the need to learn the language because it's part of my culture and heritage, and consequently, my identity. Since then, learning the Chinese language and culture became my passion -- it still is. I'm still not the best Mandarin speaker around, but through my own efforts, I was able to learn and master the language. Now, I'm very proud to be teaching Mandarin to fellow Overseas Chinese who do not know the language. :)

I hope all other Chinese from countries such as Singapore and Malaysia realize how truly truly fortunate they are to be exposed to the language early on in their lives. We Overseas Chinese from the Phils are not as lucky as you guys.

I agree with the above. me, being a philippine-chinese as well, feel that its important to speak your native language (I speak the fookienese dialect). but since I reside in Canada, where 90% are cantonese speakers, its hard for me to get around. I also find it weird that most cantonese people here have never heard of fookienese. so they don't think I speak chinese at all! (which is so UNTRUE) it offends me, but I've gotten use to it. as for mandarin, I use to go to chinese school to learn, but I couldn't understand the teacher since they kept speaking in mandarin! so I quit. but I'm planning to take up mandarin again somewhere else.

[xiang jian dan ai]

i am Chinese living here in the Philippines. i am ashamed to say that i know only a little about the language. i know a little fookien and mandarin. i studied in a Chinese from elementary to high school but sad to say, i didn't really learn from it because to pass, we just had to memorize the words...not necessarily understand them.

i remember what my grandfather told me 10 years ago. he said that i should start speaking fookien (or mandarin) already since it will be the predominant language in the future. i didn't really believe him at that time because...who would? that was like 1994...China wasn't progressive then as it is at present.

now, i really feel the need to know the language, i've realized that it indeed will be helpful as more and more Chinese people are slowly gaining power over business dealings in the world. i am, in my own way, studying Chinese. I plan to take formal lessons a year from now and go to China or Hong Kong or Taiwan to immerse myself in the culture.

[littlefishie]

I'm sooo glad that I can read, write, and speak Chinese. If I didn't, I'd be missing out on a lot. Chinese tv serials, wuxia novels, Chinese music, and Jay...

[jes!]

i really really appreciate the Chinese language.. luckily, i realized how important it is in the middle of my highschool years. although i kinda regret the fact that i should've studied chinese seriously in grade school.. although i can say that i am pretty good at it i want to be really really better. that's why i am planning to go to china and study more once i finish college !

[dizzydee]

I'm a Chinese person, and I was born in the United States, and unfortunately, it's really hard to maintain the culture of my background and the culture I was born in. I grew up learning Cantonese, and now as I grow older, I continually use less and less of it. It's not from lack of wanting to retain it, but lack of usage. I took my ability to speak Chinese as a child for granted because now as I'm almost a "legal" adult, I really wish that I had learned how to read and write in it.. not because Chinese is becoming a world power, but for the benefit of myself.

[friends_pt]

I think that chinese is a language which has a long history which shld not be forgotten n most imporatanly, for the chinese, this is our mother tongue n we shld noe how to speak this language... afterall, this is not smthing difficult to learn... if non-chinese can learn it, why cant the chinese learn it?

[LSS]

I regret for not going to chinese school when i am in primary... and then in secondary. Now that i realise how important chinese are... i started learning a bit.

Without chinese language.. its hard reading lyrics, magazines, watching drama, movies... and worst of all.. going to karaoke and don't know how to read the lyric ( which force me to memorise the whole song !!! )

[ClicketyClam]

yea i too regret not being serious about learning chinese when i was younger. i think that now i have finally realized how important chinese is in my life. although i can understand most chinese, i can't read or write (well i know certain words from years of chinese school) but i haven't attended chinese school since eight grade. my new high school offers chinese as a foreign language and alot of my friends are in chinese 5 or 6. i really wish i could have lived here a few years ago and started chinese with them. then i'm sure i would know alot more. i'm planning on taking my lunch period and sitting in on some of the chinese classes in my school. . .

[chewy]

i think Chinese is more than an economic advantage for all chinese...itz the best way to noe our culture. history and lots more....chinese helps us to communicate with the chinese (people from china) no doubt and at the same time we can learn more from these people as then there will not be ani language barrier...the existence of language is for communication and is not measurable by dollars and cents (as in used in biz onli)..as in case of Singapore education system, I think the chinese education reform is too unrealistic, goals r unreachable and i think it will increase the stress of the students...rather we should change the mindset of ppl in Singapore that chinese has its own value which is unmeasurable in economic terms....cheers to chinese!

[ekyec]

Chinese is important, and will be even more important in the comming future as china continues to boom ahead[economically]. By then, many of us will probably be in careers where there'll be constant ties with china, meaning that learning mandarin will be necessary.

Besides, knowing an extra language always gives more advantage in anything. Like you've all said, we can then watch all these dramas, read all those great books, listen to chinese songs, and actually know what they're saying..etc

bahh...the only problem is that it takes alot of time to learn[when you're not from a asian country][o maybe its just coz I'm a bit dumb and slow :unsure: ]. I know cantonese cause' my family speaks canto at home. but i don't know much mandarin at all, apart from the stuff i've learnt from songs.
and my reading and writing skills are quite sucky, i progress very slowly, but one day[hopefully before i enter Uni] i will have somewhat mastered it.
and i needa somehow try learn mandarin on the way..since it is the main language in china, and all the other mandarin speaking countries. =/ .....=S...

[MeMeMe]

Yeah I don't know much chinese either after being overseas for so long but to my parents chinese is really important and they encourage me to learn. I believe in the next fews year China economically will become more inmportant and being able to speak chinese will be essential. But it's a really complicated language to learn and I think that's why some ppl don't take the incentive to learn it.

[zaizai rox]

i think that the chinese language is very important but like some of u guys i didn;t take it seriously when i was younger because i live in the US and everyone in my class didn;t care about it either . i went to chinese school for about 2 months and i regret it alot cuz i wish i could write. i got into the whole mandrin music and taiwanese drama thing about a year ago and when i went to taiwan a couple of months ago i realized just how important chinese is, to my parents chinese is veyr important but i mean its hard to celebrate like new years or mooncake festival or other holidays in the US thats why im really grateful for chinese satelittle and chinatown. cuz i mean obviously im not american like no matter how much i try so i thiink its good to get in touch with ur culture..ok im probably going off topic but anyway yea i think chinese is majorly important!

[o_0xrandomnessx0_o]

like many others, i didn't take chinese very seriously when i was younger because i thought it was boring and such, but now, i find it really interesting because its another language where we can express our thoughts. but what i think is the best is that with chinese, you can learn a completely different culture and with that, music! i find that chinese music much more...i don't know...meaningful? than english music nowadays.. and when i went to taiwan a few years ago, i saw that there was really no way to not be able to live there without learning chinese, so now, i take my saturday classes more seriously..but what i'm trying to say is that chinese is important! :)

that was kind of off-topic..:/

[kewlpiggy88]

even though chinese school wasn't that fun, whenever my mom brought up the idea of quitting, i would be like, "no!". i don't know why, but i just knew i couldn't quit. (my mom asking me to quit was a sort of reverse psychology because she would get all mad if i jokingly, though my mom doesn't really get when i'm joking, said that i wanted to quit). anyway i wish i had paid more attn to the teachers...now i'm taking chinese at regular school, but it's different. it's more like learning spanish and whatnot. in chinese school they used to explain the background of the word or something. and stuff like radicals and poems or whatever. i really want to be able to just read the newspaper or stg...but that's going to take forever. argh so many characters...

[JiaYi]

How lucky of you guys to be taking Chinese school seriously :) I wish I could do that, but I just don't appreciate the way Chinese was taught at the school I used to attend. The problem was their method of teaching. They assumed that everyone spoke Mandarin (actually... what they were really teaching was Taiwanese) at home, never once regarding the fact that some students speak very little at home, or speak a different dialect (like I do). Therefore, almost every class discussion was done in Taiwanese. I was quite annoyed and quit, which is a shame -_- I don't know, but I'm definitely planning on picking Chinese up again once I get in college, but it'll be hard :\

A lot of times, I wish I wasn't born in the USA, or at least, to have been born in a heavily populated Chinese community (which I'm not). There's just something about the Chinese culture that I yearn, but I really don't know what or why I do... it's really strange how I feel so right at home whenever I visit Chinatown. People there are always so lively ^_^

[khupno0do]

wow, you bring up a really good point.
i'm vietnamese, and aside from improving on my own language i'd also like to learn some chinese, because the more and more into chinese culture i get, the more i realize that after thousands of years of occupation, chinese culture is so much imbedded into our vietnamese culture that there are oddly familiar things, especially words, that i often come across (ie, cong min= thong minh= smart, or mu ren = nguoi mu = blind person) and i'd like to appreciate something that's also a part of our culture.
not only that, if it's possible i'd like to learn a little bit of thai, kmer, and any other southeast asian language i know i left out.

[mystic_heaven]

I'm Chinese living in Canada
I speak Cantonese at home, and I go to Chinese school on Saturdays
I learn traditonal Chinese (its more meaningful because traditonal shaped our history, and is more unique)
but then now my teacher tells me to start recognizing simplified too because it's more widely used in China >____<
We also learn Mandarin, I'm thankful for that too

I agree with you, learning Chinese is really valuable
whether you're going to go to China in the future or not
especially if you're already Chinese, you should definitely know Chinese

[taiwanguonanhai]

I think the learning Chinese from an economic stand-point is kind of stupid. In the business area, English will probably remain the lingua-franca because of its presence since the birth of corporations. This might be a little America-centric, but a lot of it has to do with the power that the US had when it became the business power of the world. ANd while this is not really true today, the fact that int'l. business kind of started with the English language will probably keep it going as the standard.

Culturally Chinese is very important. If you don't know how to speak CHinese, be it Cantonese, Mandarin, Hakka, whatever, you don't represent your culture. And everybody should learn traditional chinese, whether you're a mainlander or not. Traditional is the true Chinese, and Simplified, while ugly, is relatively to recognize if you can read traditional.

[chelsa]

hisashiluv14 I mirror your sentiments exactly on this topic. My family places huge emphasis regarding the Chinese language as well so while I went to an English school, I was lovingly taught Chinese by my mum but in the beginning, I was quite rebellious, I couldn't care less. In the end, I got sick of her calling me "banana" and I also found a very entertaining way to learn, that is by reading song lyrics. I could did this b/c I have a basic knowledge of the language so it was easy for me to improve from there but ultimately, I am still far off from calling myself even remotely good but at least I can safely grasp at what a sentence is trying to say even if I don't know all the words in that sentence! :D

[shengers]

hi, chinese is a great language ya'll, and i agree with the fact that china would be a super power in the future, you should all work to improve that wonderful language, i'm a Japenese, and i board in Shanghai to learn the language and attend an international school there, as you all might have known, Chinese Mandrain is the most widely spoken language in the whole world. :)

[piglet]

i am living in Singapore and just todae..i spotted a cute postcard which state...speak chinese is cool...we are ahving campaign to promote the use of chinese and this is just part of the advertisment..i think chinese is a veri impt language as its the means of communication between my friends and famili here..i am not tt strong in eng..but to certain..chinese is also impt to mi as i am a born chinese..and i shld respect my culture and ahve a sense of belonging..

[eloi]

in chinese, 能用华语是福, which means to be able to use chinese is fortune.

i totally agree with this, as i used to hate chinese so much because of the method of teaching in my sch. now i truly enjoy it, as it is not just a language, it's a culture, a culture which millions of people worldwide share. chinese is very important, especially to chinese, as this not just a language like any other, it is our roots, and our rich history. :D

[sunnygirl]

im not Chinese. not even half not even have a bit of chinese blood but pure Malay. i already interested in learning chinese b4 i started to know Jay Chou and interested in Mandarin songs. i tink d influence comes from the Chinese dramas and slowly i tink chinese language is such a unique language (besides my language :P) and has its own value. as China already proved to the world dat they can be d next world major industry, Chinese value spread widely around Asia and slowly to the world. i tink knowing other languages like Chinese is great esp for the non-chinese so we can learn Chinese tradition and value thus expose the culture to other non Chinese community. i hope i can be expert in Chinese language :-)

[kjd-108]

my thoughts...hmm...in short...

proper marketing is a tool to increase profit/awareness...? ;)

[CJay]

The value of language is in one's ability to communicate with ther people. Thus the larger a group of people that speak a certain language, the more important that language becomes. This is just like English becoming an international language that people use to communicate with other people. While this doesn't just apply to business, it is one of the reasons people do need to learn other languages.

[spork]

Oooo I love this thread. As a child that grew up in America I absolutely hated learning Chinese when I was little because I thought it was useless, especially in America (I'm sure a lot of kids from other countries have the same sentiments about learning English too...). Honestly, one of the reasons I want to suddenly pick up chinese again (since I've forgotten everything :shy:) is because I do want to visit Hong Kong/China again on my own and be able to get around on my own without asking for help and looking like a stupid tourist :P It'd also be a good experience to live and work there too. Up until I visited Hong Kong again when I was 16 (after almost 10 years of not visiting) I wanted to distance myself as much as possible from Asian culture, but when I was walking along the streets of Hong Kong I gradually found myself wanted to learn more about Chinese culture/language in general. When I started listening to Jay Chou I found that the Chinese language is very pretty and smooth, much more smooth than cantonese, which is what I grew up speaking at home, and since I thought mandarine was such a beautiful language I wanted to learn more about it and be able to speak it fluently. Thanks to that interest in language, in Jay and this forum :happy: I'm more into the Asian culture now, which I see as the first step in learning more about my heritage.

[~San-san~]

Growing up I didn't like learning chinese and I thought that learning it would be useless....But now I want to learn it for the sake of being chinese. I even plan on going to Taiwan to live there for a few years, study chinese and maybe learn some taiwanese haha....

[lilgurl9791]

I'm Chinese, born in Vietnam and being raised in the US. I speak 100% Cantonese and can't speak Mandarin fully neither properly. I can't read nor write well. I consider myself quite useless to the Chinese culture and not a very good example as a Chinese because I hardly know anything about the language. I work hard to learn Chinese because I want to be a part of the culture that I once had. Nowadays, living in the US is turning me into someone that isn't quite Chinese at all (not absolutely since I listen to Chinese music, eat Chinese food, etc) What I'm sayingis, the language is very important because not only does it help you understand others but it also another part of you. I hope everything makes sense :tongue:

[funkaeh]

i think all chinese should learn chinese and it is NOT that much of a bother.
chinese is a beautiful language. sometimes, you can only express yourself best in chinese. which other language allows you to convey a whole story through 4 words? (chinese idioms) and it is like the chinese words all have a long origin, with a meaning behind every word, a story behind every idiom.

although it is hard to master, i think it should not be an obstacle and hinder us from thoroughly enjoying the joy of the language. i personally feel that chinese has been too 'academic-based' which is a joy-killer. and because of the increasing importance of english, the international language and for the sake of convenient communication, many parents do not bother to teach their children chinese. thus, their children have lousy grades for chinese and gradually dreads all the practice etc. :( its kinda sad cause chinese CAN be beautiful (:

[ViBi]

in chinese, 能用华语是福, which means to be able to use chinese is fortune.

i sooo agree... i mean, as a chinese, u should no how to speak ur own language, whether it is mando, canto, shanghainese or any other dialect. i mean, it is embarassing when u go back to ur home country and u cant speak their language...

plus, even if u are not of chinese descent, like a caucasian or something.. if u can learn to speak chinese, a lot of ppl will be in awe of u...


just an after thought.. y wont caucasians be in awe of chinese who can speak english??

[ocy]

Just to add in more info about the Chinese written language, it's one of the picture-writing communication still left in this world. Well, it may not have any resemblance to anything we see at first sight, but if you look at the characters for a while and you'll get the feeling of its meaning having association with the actual stuff. Like the word, Shan (hill/mountain), does it looked like a mountain to u? Does that make the chinese language more rich?

Anyway, if more people, chinese especially, wanted to be encouraged to learn Chinese, I think that the way education works in learning Chinese needs to be changed, or tweaked to the way we learn say...English, since I find that English isn't that hard or boring to learn. From the Chinese education that I had received, starting from secondary school, I notice that I'd lost my interest for it, since a great deal of effort has been put into memorizing idioms or proverbs. Well, I don't really like to memorize things, that's why I'm poor in my History subjects as well as Chinese language. That's speaking from my experience and opinion.

From the perspective of psychological:
"People don't appreciate what they what, but appreciate what they don't what"
This could be true for some people, most people, I say. Look deep inside your heart, ask yourself, if you have really done the above. This can be apply in the case of Chinese language, some Chinese just don't appreciate their heritage, that they would admire other culture and wanted to be born as that race instead.

However, all is not lost. There's still hope. Jay's music or any other good Chinese musicians can influences the younger Chinese generations, and not forgetting us, to learn the Chinese language. That's one point-of-view. And also, China's economy boom, as well as several other ways.

Vibi, a lot of nation can speak English, and not just the Chinese, other Asian countries also. So, why would they be awe?

[xinerz]

That's one thing foreigners in countries like the USA will never understand. Some people *want* to keep their culture. Not everyone is happy to be Americanized. And unfortunately, wanting to retain a cultural identity means people telling you to "go back to your own country" (I gladly will).

i want to go back to my own country.... (except i was born in iowa... but you know what i mean) American born Taiwanese, i love this american culture, but i also want to retain my heritage (as much as i know of it) as much as i can... i love taiwanese culture, language, foods (oh, esp the food)

i also try to spread this type of feeling to my other asian friends. most of them pretty much share the same thought as i do (they love america, but also want to keep their culture and want to go back some time either to visit or to live) . i have one particular friend that just refuses to accept any sort of chinese mentality. as you can say, whitewashed. a twinkie. it's okay i suppose... we don't get along anymore because she does not accept my point of view in life...

*sigh* the Chinese culture is amazing =) Learn to love it :happy:

[rosiean86]

lilgurl9791-you sound like one of my friends-her and some of her sisters were born in Vietnam, but they're actually Cantonese, hehe.

I also hated learning Chinese when I was growing up..probably because I wanted to "fit in" at school. I wanted to be as normal as possible. I also totally thought it was useless. I remember now my parents telling me to value my culture and language, because not everyone is as blessed as I am to grow up being bilingual. They even sent me to Chinese school (which I'm sure some of you went to as well). So thanks to that, I know how to read and write a bit.

Now that I'm older, I appreciate what my parents have done, and regret the fact that I didn't try harder when I was younger. I see myself in my younger brother, who's becoming a complete banana. His Chinese is at best...very broken. Hopefully once he gets older he'll appreciate his heritage more, just like I did. I started to become more aware of my Chinese bg when I went to high school..where everyone was white. It was a very painful time for me, a time of struggle. But once I got through it, I'm proud to be a Chinese-American. I believe that talented musicians like Jay or Leehom can influence younger generations to appreciate the Chinese language.

One time I was arguing with my friend about whether or not we would teach our children our native languages (he's Korean), and he was against it. He thought it would be useless. But in my opinion, having the skill of being fluent in another language is always a plus. The economy is becoming more global, and Chinese is the most spoken language in the world. It's bound to become useful at some point.

That said, I think Chinese is valuable to learn because it will always remind you of your background and ancestors. Although being Chinese does not define who you are as a person, I don't think anyone can deny that it's a distinctive part of you.

[swtaznkandi]

i agree with hisashiluv14 in the sense that i learn chinese not just for economical or commercial reasons, but because i AM chinese and also have a deep respect for the language and culture. i always think it's sad when people of a certain ethnic group know nothing of their culture and cannot speak, write, understand, or read the language. i myself share that experience with you hisashiluv14, for when i was younger i didn't think twice about the chinese culture and up until i was around 13 i still spoke chinese like a 7-year-old. it wasn't until i started listening to asian music (helped along by jay of course, and also yuki) that i realized what being chinese meant to me and how much of myself i would lose if i ignored my cultural heritage. so, i now regret all those years of grudgery i held towards my parents for forcing me to go to chinese school, because if i could turn back the hands of time, i would definitely have tried to learn more. i lost so many valuable years to ignorance and insolence.

however, i wouldn't go so far as to say that learning a language solely for political or economical purposes is wrong. after all, diplomats, businessmen, and politicians do it all the time, and it's not like they're only trying to be selfish by looking out for their own self-interest. i think the reporter was trying to do a decent deed by motivating people to pursue the learning of chinese. even if we now have to use *trade* as an incentive, i don't think it's wrong, because regardless of the motive, people will at least continue to learn. that's what's most important.

[lil~jo]

The Chinese language now is more inmportant than it has ever been.

As most of you can see, it is the 2nd most used language in the world...
1st is English, 2nd chinese (manderin), 3rd spanish.

Well, and ofcourse all of you know that majority of the items you are all using are now made in CHINA, those are the word you often, infact not often, nearly always see on all the packages, machinery, food items etc.

So do you not think it is the time to get in the action and learn chinese?
We are now often hearing about China taking over the world.....you are all familiar with that term right?
It isnt neccessarily correct, but its easy to believe seeing as they are one of the biggest stockholding companys all around.
So yeah....

I guess the value of the chinese language can be seen from what I have said from above...
Cause if you want to be in the action, and be a business stockholder, or even survive in the BIG world......you need to know the 2 most used languages, and that is English and Chinese....
So learn now, and you wont regret it.

[hisashiluv14]

First, a disclaimer: There's nothing wrong with learning Chinese for economic reasons.

But that does not mean that I have to agree with it.

lil~jo: Pardon me if I'm harsh, but I can't help it. If you think that the value of the Chinese language lies primarily in its potential economic benefits, then I think you should work for the Singapore government. I absolutely cannot tolerate that notion, because it completely undermines and cheapens the richness of the language and its cultural and historical significance, which many people do not give the slightest toss about nowadays. When you learn a language solely for pragmatic purposes, too many things will be lost to you, and the loss is further exacerberated if you're a native speaker of the language. Reason? Very easy. When a person learns Chinese solely for the purpose of doing business in China, that means that he only cares about basic conversational skills. But isn't there so much more to Chinese than saying "ni hao ma wo hen hao"? What about Chinese poetry and literature? That's all a part of the language too, and that is what will definitely be lost if everyone learned Chinese for the sake of reaping its potential economic benefits.

And that, I completely detest. My language is worth so much more than mere money. And since I'm a materialistic-as-hell person, when I say that something is worth more than MERE money, that something is obviously freaking priceless.

Chinese is freaking priceless. Don't cheapen it by attaching a lousy economic non-value to it.

[tung2sai]

I do agree these rules are fucking retarded. Why do I have to post with so much bullshit when I can simplify what i am saying into a few words and sentances?

[Onigiri]

I am ABC, that is Australian Born Chinese but for the record I can speak Chinese. I know a majority of ABCs can hardly speak the language or even understand it. It saddens me that there are people like this that so deny the fact that they are Chinese because they are born in another country. But even I had this feeling as I was growing up.

The reason I know Chinese is because my grandparents who are living in Australia couldn't grasp English and thus they encouraged my parents to speak to me in Chinese as I was growing up and thus learn the language. Theoretically you don't learn a language by looking at it up in textbooks (well actually I guess you can) but you learn it by the way you see/hear how other people use it, in context.

But growing up in a country wher Asians aren't that predominant can cause obstacles such as rascism. When I was younger I was tease to the pont I wished I wasn't Chinese and thought I could get through my life only knowing English. So at a stage in my life I'd stop speaking Chinese and I'd forget my basic phrases. I found it difficult to communicate to my grandparents and thus I loathed visiting them.

I guess there was a turning point in my life when I hit my teen years and I've changed since then. I frequently visit my grandparents in hope to improve the Chinese which I've lost! Because I am very proud of the fact that I can learn it and that it is actually a part of me. It bothers me that there are those people who are Chinese and can't even speak it because they don't have the heart to learn it.

[ViBi]

amen to everyone la... i moved overseas from hk when i was 9 and my chinese went down the drain for a while because everything around me was in english.. it wasnt until when i went back to hk that i realised the value of chinese.. its so much more than china-business thing.. its also about who u are as a person... i think its horrible how some ppl are ethnically chinese but are too "caucasian-ised" to know any chinese or practise any chinese culture.. its a bit sad..

[xiAoJie]

everyone should go learn it!! i use to hate learning it when i was young, but besides all the business advantage you gain from it, its awesome for going to kareoke!!!! and reading chinese magazines!!

i'm kindov somewhat aussie-ised but its still great to be able to keep parts of your cultural heritage such as language. i feel kinda sorry for those who dont keep in touch with their language tho...

[Pugwash]

Whether you're ABC, CBC or whatever, you'll most likely lack motivation.

I'm a CBC, Canadian Born Chinese and I hadn't realize the value of Chinese language till my late high school years. I started getting more, "Chinese" by having a girlfriend and a group of friend who were Cantonese and me being a guy who doesn't know the language fluently and didn't pay attention for a good 9 years of class felt.. pretty emberassed. Oh well!

You can't blame them, school is boring and what excuse can you really tell a younging that some day Chinese will be an asset to them? Their English is better, English will get them further, English is more frequently used, etc. Something like, "Cantonese is your main language and it's your duty and pride to continue to use and excel in it" just doesn't cut it.

It's when something fun hits them that they're willing to learn i.e. music. I don't understand Mandarin but, I still enjoy Jay's music. It has inspired me to take Mandarin class but, I still continue to learn nothing!

[Dita511]

This topic raises so many interesting points that I have been thinking about since I started learning Chinese around 2 years ago.

Of course, my Chinese is still at a very low level, but what I have learnt so far has made me appreciate Chinese culture as a whole so much. So why learn Chinese? I must admit, I became interested in Chinese because of a very superficial catalyst: watching 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' and thinking that the language was so ancient and beautiful, and that China was such a scenic, magical place :rolleyes:

That was in year 8 of high school. Back then, I had a feeling about China like many non-Chinese Australian people: that China was different, the 'other', and thus exotic and intriguing.

Since then, I have come to appreciate Chinese language and culture on a much deeper level, and given up such superficial thoughts. To me, Chinese language is something that is powerful, the script being especially stunning since it has been continued for over 2500 years. English cannot claim such longevity.

I don't think it's important to learn Chinese because I am going to live in China for a year in 2007, or because I plan to work there in future, but because it is a great language with a rich culture attached to it. It saddens me that governments such as Singapore seem to place more importance on English than Chinese, especially since many Singaporeans are direct descendants of Chinese people. Many people seem to arrogantly assume that English is so much more important. Well, the only reason that English is more widely spoken is because of the British Empire during the 1800s. It is merely circumstancial. And while there are no 'what ifs' in history, Chinese or another major language could easily have come to dominate if historical events had turned out differently. However, I don't believe that anyone should be forced to learn a language they don't want to.

So I learn Chinese as best I can, both culture AND language, because I love it and think it's extremely important. It allows me to see what many non-Chinese Westerners are too biased or superficial to see.

[POTO]

The value of the chinese language has increased significantly over the years ever since china's economy started to boom. In s'pore, our government is also encouraging us to take up mandarine lessons so as to be able to meet the challenges in the future.

[josh_yth]

well, i'm really thankful that i used to live in hk for almost 8 yrs, and while there i learned how to write almost proficiently and read almost all the character that are commonly used.

when i was still in hk, i always hated the literature class(in cantanoese), because the teacher always want us to memorize ton of new vocabulary and write essay every other day, but now i'm really thankful for what my teacher did then which helped me a lot to perfect the chinese language and later learn mandrain.

after i move to california, i forgot how to write a lot of the chinese character already, and am really regret about it 4 not keep practicing chinese after moving to US.

also, by learning the chinese language, it'll help us ppl with chinese background to be distinguish as chinese and not just asian.