Chinese is a language spoken by about a quarter of the world's population. It's also one of the six working languages of the United Nations. It's called "Han Yu" in Chinese because it is spoken by the Han people, the largest ethnic group in China. Mandarin being the main dialect and the official language spoken in China, is also known as "Putonghua" which means "common speech", it is used to promote communication among Chinese who speak different dialects. Mandarin is also known as "Hua Yu" which translates as "Chinese language", like in Singapore or other Chinese-speaking parts of the world. In Taiwan, Mandarin is called "National language" which means "National language". Learn More
What are Chinese dialects?
Dialects of Chinese can be as different as Spanish is from French. Speakers of dialects such as "Guang Dong Hua" Cantonese and Mandarin may not understand each other because the dialects are not mutually understandable, even though their written form are the same using Chinese characters. Besides Mandarin, Cantonese is also widely spoken by Chinese living in the US.
Why Study Chinese?
China is one of the world’s oldest and richest continuous cultures, over 5000 years old.
China is the most populous nation in the world, with 1.28 billion people.
One fifth of the planet speaks Chinese. Mandarin Chinese is the mother tongue of over 900 million people, making it the most widely spoken first language in the world.
In addition to the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan, Mandarin Chinese is also spoken in the important and influential Chinese communities of Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, and Mongolia.
China is the second largest economy in the world and one of largest trading partners of the United States.
Knowing Chinese may give you an edge when competing for an important position or applying for study abroad programs.
Chinese has a relatively uncomplicated grammar. Unlike French, German or English, Chinese has no verb conjugation (no need to memorize verb tenses!) and no noun declension (e.g., gender and number distinctions).
Each year more and more students around the world whose mother tongue is not Mandarin are studying it with enthusiasm and success. If they all can learn it, so can you!