| Sinitic | |
|---|---|
| Chinese | |
| Geographic distribution | East Asia,Southeast Asia,Central Asia,North Asia |
| Ethnicity | Han Chinese,Hui |
| Linguistic classification | Sino-Tibetan
|
| Proto-language | Proto-Sinitic |
| Subdivisions | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-5 | zhx |
| Glottolog | sini1245 (Sinitic)macr1275 (Macro-Bai) |
 Map of Sinitic languages in China | |
TheSinitic languages[a], also known as theChinese languages (simplified Chinese:汉语族;traditional Chinese:漢語族;pinyin:Hànyǔ zú),[4] often synonymous with theChinese language if the whole group is considered as varieties of the same language, are agroup of East Asiananalytic languages that constitute a major branch of theSino-Tibetan language family. It is frequently proposed that there is a primary split between the Sinitic languages and the rest of the family (theTibeto-Burman languages). This view is rejected by some researchers[5] but has found phylogenetic support among others.[6][7] TheMacro-Bai languages, whose classification is difficult, may be an offshoot ofOld Chinese and thus Sinitic;[8] otherwise, Sinitic is defined only by the manyvarieties of Chinese unified by a shared historical background, and usage of the term "Sinitic" may reflect the linguistic view thatChinese constitutes a family of distinct languages, rather than variants of a single language.[b]
Over 91% of the Chinese population speaks a Sinitic language, of whom about three-quarters speak a Mandarin variety.[10] Estimates of the number of global speakers of Sinitic branches as of 2018–2019, both native and non-native, are listed below:[11] Note that the numbers are uncertain due to uncertainty in the population estimates of China.
| Branch | Speakers | pct. |
|---|---|---|
| Mandarin | 1,118,584,040 | 73.50% |
| Yue | 85,576,570 | 5.62% |
| Wu | 81,817,790 | 5.38% |
| Min | 75,633,810 | 4.97% |
| Jin | 47,100,000 | 3.09% |
| Hakka | 44,065,190 | 2.90% |
| Xiang | 37,400,000 | 2.46% |
| Gan | 22,200,000 | 1.46% |
| Huizhou | 5,380,000 | 0.35% |
| Pinghua | 4,130,000 | 0.27% |
| Dungan | 56,300 | 0.004% |
| Total | 1,521,943,700 | 100% |
DialectologistJerry Norman estimated that there are hundreds of mutually unintelligible Sinitic languages.[12] They form adialect continuum in which differences generally become more pronounced as distances increase, though there are also some sharp boundaries.[13] The Sinitic languages can be divided into Macro-Bai languages and Chinese languages, and the following is one of many potential ways of subdividing these languages. Some varieties, such asShaozhou Tuhua, are hard to classify and thus are not included in the following briefs.
This is a language family first proposed by linguistZhengzhang Shangfang,[14] and was expanded to include Longjia and Luren.[15][16] It likely split off from the rest of Sinitic during theOld Chinese period.[17] The languages included are all considered minority languages in China and are spoken in theSouthwest.[18][19] The languages are:
All other Sinitic languages henceforth would be considered Chinese.
The Chinese branch of the family is classified into at least seven main families. These families are classified based on five main evolutionary criteria:[10]
The varieties within one family may not be mutually intelligible with each other. For instance,Wenzhounese andNingbonese are not highly mutually intelligible. TheLanguage Atlas of China identifies ten groups:[20]
with Jin, Hui, Pinghua, and Tuhua not part of the seven traditional groups.
Varieties of Mandarin are used in theWestern Regions, theSouthwest,Huguang,Inner Mongolia,Central Plains and theNortheast,[20] by around three-quarters of the Sinitic-speaking population.[11] Historically, the prestige variety has always been Mandarin, which is still reflected today inStandard Chinese.[21] Standard Chinese is now an official language of theRepublic of China,People's Republic of China,Singapore andUnited Nations.[10] Re-population efforts, such as that of theQing dynasty in the Southwest, tended to involve Mandarin speakers.[22] Classification of Mandarin lects has undergone several significant changes, though nowadays it is commonly divided as such, based on the distribution of the historical checked tone:[20]
as well as other lects, which do not neatly fall into these categories, such as MandarinJunhua varieties.
Varieties of Mandarin can be defined by their universally lost -m final, low number of tones, and smaller inventory ofclassifiers, among other features. Mandarin lects also often have rhoticerhua rimes, though the amount of its use may vary between lects.[10] Loss of checked tone is an often cited criterion for Mandarin languages, though lects such as Yangzhounese and Taiyuannese show otherwise.
| Mandarin | Non-Mandarin | Gloss | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing | Jinan | Zhengzhou | Xi'an | Taiyuan | Chengdu | Nanjing | Guangzhou | Meizhou | Xiamen | Anyi | ||
| 音 | in | iẽ | iən | iẽ | iəŋ | in | in | iɐm | im | im | im | 'sound' |
| 心 | ɕin | ɕiẽ | siən | ɕiẽ | ɕiəŋ | ɕin | sin | sɐm | sim | sim | ɕim | 'heart' |
Northeastern Mandarin is spoken inHeilongjiang,Jilin, most ofLiaoning and northeasternInner Mongolia, whereas Beijing Mandarin is spoken in northernHebei, most ofBeijing, parts ofTianjin andInner Mongolia.[20] The two families' most notable features are the heavy use ofrhoticerhua and seemingly random distribution of the dark checked tone, and generally having four tones with the contours of high flat, rising, dipping, and falling.
| Northeastern/Beijing | Other | Gloss | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harbin | Changchun | Shenyang | Beijing | Heyuan | Chaozhou | Suzhou | Hefei | Wuhan | ||
| 客 | ˨˩˧ | ˥˧ | ˨˩˧ | ˥˧ | ˥ | ˨˩ | ˥˥ | ˥ | ˨˩˧ | 'guest' |
| 八 | ˦˦ | ˦˦ | ˧˧ | ˥˥ | ˥ | ˨˩ | ˥˥ | ˥ | ˨˩˧ | 'eight' |
| 北 | ˨˩˧ | ˨˩˧ | ˨˩˧ | ˨˩˧ | ˥ | ˨˩ | ˥˥ | ˥ | ˨˩˧ | 'north' |
Northeastern Mandarin, especially in Heilongjiang, contains many loanwords from Russian.[25]
| Term | Pronunciation | Meaning | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 卜留克 | bǔliúkè | 'rutabaga' | брюкваbryukva |
| 馬神 | mǎshén | 'machine' | машинаmashina |
| 巴籬子 | bālízi | 'jail' | полицияpolitsiya |
Northeastern Mandarin lects can be divided into three main groups, namely Hafu (includingHarbinnese andChangchunnese), Jishen (includingJilinnese andShenyangnese), and Heisong. Notably, the extinctTaz language ofRussia is also a Northeastern Mandarin language. Beijing is sometimes included in Northeastern Mandarin due to its distribution of the historical dark checked tone,[23][24] though is listed as its own group by others, often due to its more regular light checked tones.[20]
Jilu Mandarin is spoken in southern Hebei and westernShandong,[20] and is often represented withJinannese.[26] Notable cities that use Jilu Mandarin lects includeCangzhou,Shijiazhuang,Jinan andBaoding.[27][28] Characteristically Jilu Mandarin features include merging the dark checked into the dark level tone, the light checked into light level or departing based on themanner of articulation of theinitial, and vowel breaking intong rime series' (通攝) checked-tone words, among other features.
Jilu Mandarin can be classified into Baotang, Shiji, Canghui and Zhangli.[29] Zhangli is of note due to its preservation of a separate checked tone.
Jiaoliao Mandarin is spoken in theJiaodong andLiaodong Peninsulae, which includes the cities ofDalian andQingdao, as well as several prefectures along the China-Korea border.[20] Like Jilu Mandarin, its light checked tone is merged into light level or departing based on the manner of articulation of the initial, though its dark checked is merged into the rising. Itsrì initial (日母) terms are pronounced with anull initial (apart from openzhǐ rime series (止攝開口) finals), unlike the/ʐ/ of Northern and Beijing Mandarin.[30]
Based on, for example, the pronunciation of thepalatalizedjiàn initial (見母),[20] Jiaoliao Mandarin can be divided into Qingzhou, Denglian and Gaihuan areas.[29]
| Yantai | Weihai | Qingdao | Dalian | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 交 | ciau | ciau | tɕiɔ | tɕiɔ | 'to hand in' |
| 見 | cian | cian | tɕiã | tɕiɛ̃ | 'to see' |
Central Plains Mandarin is spoken in theCentral Plains ofHenan, southwesternShanxi, southernShandong and northernJiangsu, as well as most ofShaanxi, southernNingxia andGansu and southernXinjiang, in famous cities such asKaifeng,Zhengzhou,Luoyang,Xuzhou,Xi'an,Xining andLanzhou.[31][32][33] Central Plains Mandarin lects merge the historical checked tones with a lesser muddy (次濁) and clear (清) initial together with the rising tone, and those with a fully muddy (全濁) initial are merged with the light level tone.[20]
Lanyin Mandarin, spoken in northern Ningxia, parts of Gansu, and northern Xinjiang, is sometimes grouped with Central Plains Mandarin due to its merged lesser light and dark checked tones, though it is realised as a departing tone.
Subdivision of Central Plains Mandarin is not fully agreed upon, though one possible subdivision sees 13 divisions, namely Xuhuai, Zhengkai, Luosong, Nanlu, Yanhe, Shangfu, Xinbeng, Luoxiang, Fenhe, Guanzhong, Qinlong, Longzhong and Nanjiang.[34] Lanyin Mandarin, on the other hand, is divided as Jincheng, Yinwu, Hexi, and Beijiang. TheDungan language is a collection of Central Plains Mandarin varieties spoken in the formerSoviet Union.
Jin is spoken in most ofShanxi, westernHebei, northernShaanxi, northernHenan and centralInner Mongolia,[20] often represented byTaiyuannese.[26] It was first proposed as a lect separate from the rest of Mandarin byLi Rong, where it was proposed as lects in and around Shanxi with a checked tone, though this stance is not without disagreement.[35][36] Jin varieties also often has disyllabic words derived from syllable splitting (分音詞), through the infixation of/(u)əʔl/.[10]
笨
pəŋ꜄
→
薄
pəʔ꜇
愣
ləŋ꜄
笨 {} 薄 愣
pəŋ꜄ → pəʔ꜇ ləŋ꜄
'stupid'
滾
꜂kʊŋ
→
骨
kuəʔ꜆
攏
꜂lʊŋ
滾 {} 骨 攏
꜂kʊŋ → kuəʔ꜆ ꜂lʊŋ
'to roll'
As per the Language Atlas by Li, Jin is divided into Dabao, Zhanghu, Wutai, Lüliang, Bingzhou, Shangdang, Hanxin, and Zhiyan branches.[20]
Spoken inYunnan,Guizhou, northernGuangxi, most ofSichuan, southernGansu andShaanxi,Chongqing, most ofHubei and bordering parts ofHunan, as well asKokang of Myanmar and parts of northernThailand, Southwestern Mandarin speakers take up the most area and population of all Mandarinic language groups, and would be the eighth most spoken language in the world if separated from the rest of Mandarin.[20] Southwestern Mandarinic tends to not haveretroflex consonants, and merges all checked tone categories together. Except forMinchi, which has a standalone checked category, the checked tone is merged with another category. Representative lects includeWuhannese andSichuanese, and sometimesKunmingnese.[26]
Southwestern Mandarin tends to be split into Chuanqian, Xishu, Chuanxi, Yunnan, Huguang and Guiliu branches. Minchi is sometimes separated as a remnant of Old Shu.[37]
Huai is spoken in centralAnhui, northernJiangxi, far western and easternHubei and most ofJiangsu.[20] Due to its preservation of a checked tone, some linguists believe that Huai ought to be treated as a top-level group, like Jin. Representative lects tend to beNanjingnese,Hefeinese andYangzhounese.[26] The Huai of Nanjing has likely served as a national prestige during the Ming and Qing periods,[38] though not all linguists support this viewpoint.[39]
The Language Atlas divides Huai into Tongtai, Huangxiao, and Hongchao areas, with the latter further split into Ninglu and Huaiyang. Tongtai, being geographically located furthest west, has the most significant Wu influence, such as in its distribution of historical voiced plosive series.[20][40][41]
| Tongtai | Non-Tongtai | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nantong | Taizhou | Yangzhou | Hangzhou | Fuzhou | Huizhou | |
| 地 | tʰi | tʰi | ti | di | tei | ti |
| 病 | pʰeŋ | pʰiŋ | pin | biŋ | paŋ | piaŋ |
Yue Chinese is spoken by around 84 million people,[11] in westernGuangdong, easternGuangxi,Hong Kong,Macau and parts ofHainan, as well as overseas communities such asKuala Lumpur andVancouver.[20] Famous lects such asCantonese andTaishanese belong to this family.[10] Yue Chinese lects generally possesslong-short distinctions in their vowels, which is reflected in their almost universally split dark-checked and often split light-checked tones. They generally also tend to preserve all three checked plosive finals and three nasal finals. The status of Pinghua is uncertain, and some believe its two groups, Northern and Southern, should be listed under Yue,[42] though some reject this standpoint.[20]
| Tone | Dark | Light | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Long | Short | Long | |
| Examples | 北 | 八 | 入 | 白 |
| Guangzhou | ˥˥ | ˧˧ | ˨˨ | |
| Hong Kong | ˥˥ | ˧˧ | ˨˨ | |
| Dongguan | ˦˦ | ˨˨˦ | ˨˨ | |
| Shiqi | ˥ | ˧ | ||
| Taishan | ˥˥ | ˧˧ | ˨˩ | |
| Bobai | ˥˥ | ˧˧ | ˨˨ | |
| Yulin | ˥ | ˧ | ˨ | ˨˩ |
Yue is generally split intoCantonese (which itself containsYuehai, Xiangshan, andGuanbao),Siyi,Gaoyang,Qinlian,Wuhua,Goulou (which includesLuoguang),Yongxun and the two Pinghua branches.[20] Siyi is generally agreed to be the most divergent, and Goulou is believed to be the one which is closest related to Pinghua.[42]
Hakka Chinese is a direct result of several migration waves from Northern China to the South,[43] and is spoken in easternGuangdong, parts ofTaiwan, westernFujian,Hong Kong, southernJiangxi, as well as scattered points in the rest of Guangdong,Hunan,
| 人 | ȵin | neŋ | ȵin | ŋɡin | niẽ |
| 日 | ȵit | ni | ȵit | ŋɡit | nie |
Hakka can be divided into Yuetai, Hailu, Yuebei, Yuexi, Tingzhou, Ninglong, Yuxin and Tonggui.[20]Meizhounese is often used as the representative variety of Hakka.[26]
Min Chinese is a direct descendant of Old Chinese, and is spoken inChaoshan andZhanjiang ofGuangdong,Hainan,Taiwan, most ofFujian and parts ofJiangxi andZhejiang, by around 76 million people.[11] Due to significant amounts of migration, many people inSoutheast Asia andHong Kong are also able to speak Min varieties. Lects such asTeoswa,Hainanese,Hokkien (incl.Taiwanese) andHokchiu are all Min varieties.[20]
Since Min descended from Old Chinese rather than Middle Chinese, it has some features that would be out of place in other varieties. For instance, some words with thecheng initial (澄母) are not affricates in Min. This, interestingly, has led to many languages, such asOccitan,Inuktitut,Latin,Māori andTelugu, loaning the Sinitic word for 'tea' (茶) with a plosive. Min varieties also have a very large number of words withliterary pronunciations.[10]
| Min | Non-Min | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuzhou | Quanzhou | Chaozhou | Putian | Jian'ou | Haikou | Leizhou | Lanzhou | Guiyang | Changsha | |
| 茶 | ta | te | te | tɒ | ta | ʔdɛ | te | tʂʰa | tsʰa | tsa |
| 陳 | tiŋ | tan | tʰiŋ | tɛŋ | teiŋ | ʔdaŋ | taŋ | tʂʰən | tsʰən | tsən |
Min can primarily be split into Coastal and Inland Min varieties. The former contains theSouthern Min branches of Quanzhang (Hokkien), Chaoshan (Teoswa),Datian andZhongshan, theEastern Min branches of Houguan and Funing, Qionglei Min, as well asPuxian Min, whereas the latter includesNorthern,Central andShaojiang Min. Shaojiang Min acts as a transitional area between Min, Gan, and Hakka.[21][35]
.png)
Wu Chinese is spoken in most ofZhejiang,Shanghai, southernJiangsu, parts of southernAnhui and easternJiangxi by around 82 million people.[20][11][44] Many large cities in theYangtze Delta, such asSuzhou,Changzhou,Ningbo andHangzhou, use a Wu variety. Wu varieties generally have a fricative initial in their negators, a three-way plosive distinction, as well as a checked coda preserved as aglottal stop, except for Oujiang lects, where it has becomevowel length, and Xuanzhou.[44][41]
| Shanghai | Suzhou | Changzhou | Shaoxing | Ningbo | Taizhou | Wenzhou | Jinhua | Lishui | Quzhou | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 通 | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰoŋ | tʰɔŋ | tʰaŋ |
| 東 | toŋ | toŋ | toŋ | toŋ | toŋ | toŋ | toŋ | toŋ | tɔŋ | taŋ |
| 同 | doŋ | doŋ | doŋ | doŋ | doŋ | doŋ | doŋ | doŋ | dɔŋ | daŋ |
Shanghainese,Suzhounese andWenzhounese are usually used as representatives of Wu.[26] Wu Chinese varieties generally have a massive number of vowels, which rivals evenNorth Germanic languages.[45][46] TheDondac variety has been observed to have 20 phonemic monophthongal vowels, according to one analysis.[47]
Qian Nairong divides Wu intoTaihu (or Northern Wu),Taizhou,Oujiang,Chuqu andWuzhou. Northern Wu is further divided into Piling, Suhujia, Tiaoxi, Linshao, Yongjiang, and Hangzhou, though Hangzhou's classification is unclear.[41][44]
Huizhou Chinese is spoken in westernHangzhou, southernAnhui and parts ofJingdezhen, by around 5 million people.[20][11] It is identified as a top-level group by the Language Atlas, though some linguists believe in other theories, such as it being a Gan-influenced Wu variety, due to an identifiable basis of Old Wu features.[10][48][49][50] Hui varieties are phonologically diverse, and some features are shared with Wu, such as the simplification of diphthongs.[51] Hui can be divided into Jishe, Xiuyi, Qiwu, Jingzhan and Yanzhou branches, with Tunxinese and Jixinese being representatives.
Gan Chinese is spoken in northern and centralJiangxi, parts ofHebei andAnhui and easternHunan, by 22 million people,[20][11] sometimes believed to be related to Hakka.[52][53] Gan varieties tend to notpalatalize terms with thejian initial (見母) and have an f-like initial in closedxiao andxia initial (合口曉匣兩母) terms, among other features.[54]
| Nanchang | Yichun | Ji'an | Fuzhou | Yingtan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 灰 | ϕɨi | fi | fei | fai | fɛi |
| 胡 | ϕu | fu | fu | fu | fu |
Gan can also be divided into Northern and Southern groups. The Northern group was formed during theTang dynasty, whereas the Southern group was developed based on Northern Gan.[10] The Language Atlas sees Gan divided into Changdu, Yiliu, Jicha, Fuguang, Yingyi, Datong, Dongsui, Huaiyue, and Leizi branches.[20]Nanchangnese is often chosen as the representative.[26] Shaojiang Min is identified to be influenced or even closely related to Fuguang Gan.[55]
Xiang Chinese is spoken in central and westernHunan and nearby parts ofGuangxi andGuizhou by an estimated 37 million people.[20][11] Due to migrations, Xiang can be split into New and Old Xiang groups, with Old Xiang having fewer Mandarin-influenced features.[56][10] Xiang varieties have universally lost their checked codas, but the majority of them still have a unique preserved checked tone contour. Most also have a three-way plosive distinction, like Wu varieties.[20]
One way of dividing Xiang varieties sees five distinct families, namely Changyi, Hengzhou, Louzhao, Chenxu, and Yongzhou.[57]Changshanese and one ofShuangfengnese orLoudinese are usually taken as Xiang representatives.[26]
The traditional, dialectological classification of Chinese languages is based on the evolution of the sound categories ofMiddle Chinese. Little comparative work has been done (the usual way of reconstructing the relationships between languages), and little is known about mutual intelligibility. Even within the dialectological classification, details are disputed, such as the establishment in the 1980s of three new top-level groups:Huizhou,Jin andPinghua, although Pinghua is itself a pair of languages and Huizhou maybe half a dozen.[59][60]
Like Bai, theMin languages are commonly thought to have split off directly fromOld Chinese.[61] The evidence for this split is that all Sinitic languages apart from the Min group can fit into the structure of theQieyun, a 7th-centuryrime dictionary.[62] However, this view is not universally accepted.
Like many other language families, Sinitic languages have had problems with classification. The following are a few examples.
Traditionally, thelect of urban Hangzhou andNew Xiang of easternHunan are not considered Mandarin.[20] However, linguists such as Richard VanNess Simmons and Zhou Zhenhe have observed that these two varieties possess more qualifying features ofMandarin languages.[41][63] For instance, the vowels of the second division of thejia (假) initial is often raised and backed in Wu and Xiang, while they are not in Hangzhounese and New Xiang.
| Traditionally Mandarin | Traditionally Wu | Traditionally Xiang | Gloss | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beijing | Nanjing | Nantong | Shanghai | Suzhou | Wenzhou | Hangzhou | Changsha | Shuangfeng | ||
| 花 | xua | xuɑ | xuo | ho | ho | kʰo | hua | fa | xo | 'flower' |
| 瓜 | kua | kuɑ | kuo | ko | ko | ko | kua | kua | ko | 'melon' |
| 下 | ɕia | ɕiɑ | xo | ɦo | ɦo | ɦo | ia | xa | ɣo | 'down' |
Nantongnese has heavy Wu influence, which has led to it also having raised and backed vowels.
Danzhounese andMaihua are both traditionally consideredYue lects.[20] Recent research, however, has noted that these are both are more likely unclassified.[64] Maihua, for example, may be a Yue-Hakka-Hainanese Min mixed language.[65]
Dongjiang Bendihua (東江本地話) is spoken in and aroundHuizhou andHeyuan. Its classification has always been unclear, though the most common standpoint is that it is considered Hakka.[20][66]
The variety spoken in theGanyu District ofLianyungang (贛榆話) is listed as a variety ofCentral Plains Mandarin in theLanguage Atlas of China,[20] though its tonal distribution is more similar toPeninsular Mandarin varieties.[67]
Jerry Norman classified the traditional seven dialect groups into three larger groups: Northern (Mandarin), Central (Wu, Gan, and Xiang), and Southern (Hakka, Yue, and Min). He argued that the Southern Group is derived from a standard used in the Yangtze valley during theHan dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD), which he called Old Southern Chinese, while the Central group was transitional between the Northern and Southern groups.[68] Somedialect boundaries, such as between Wu and Min, are particularly abrupt, while others, such as between Mandarin and Xiang or between Min and Hakka, are much less clearly defined.[13]
Scholars account for the transitional nature of the central varieties in terms ofwave models. Iwata argues that innovations have been transmitted from the north across theHuai River to theLower Yangtze Mandarin area and from there southeast to the Wu area and westwards along theYangtze River valley and thence to southwestern areas, leaving the hills of the southeast largely untouched.[69]
A 2007 study compared fifteen major urban dialects on the objective criteria oflexical similarity and regularity of sound correspondences, and subjective criteria of intelligibility and similarity. Most of these criteria show a top-level split with Northern,New Xiang, andGan in one group andMin (samples at Fuzhou, Xiamen, Chaozhou),Hakka, andYue in the other group. The exception was phonological regularity, where the one Gan dialect (Nanchang Gan) was in the Southern group and very close toMeixian Hakka, and the deepest phonological difference was betweenWenzhounese (the southernmost Wu dialect) and all other dialects.[70]
The study did not find clear splits within the Northern and Central areas:[70]
The twoWu dialects (Wenzhou and Suzhou) occupied an intermediate position, closer to the Northern/New Xiang/Gan group in lexical similarity and strongly closer in subjective intelligibility but closer to Min/Hakka/Yue in phonological regularity and subjective similarity, except that Wenzhou was farthest from all other dialects in phonological regularity. The two Wu dialects were close to each other in lexical similarity and subjective similarity but not in mutual intelligibility, where Suzhou was closer to Northern/Xiang/Gan than to Wenzhou.[70]
In the Southern subgroup, Hakka and Yue grouped closely together on the three lexical and subjective measures but not in phonological regularity. The Min dialects showed high divergence, with Min Fuzhou (Eastern Min) grouped only weakly with theSouthern Min dialects ofXiamen andChaozhou on the two objective criteria and was slightly closer to Hakka and Yue on the subjective criteria.[70]
The following section will be dedicated to comparing non-Bai and non-Cai–Long Sinitic languages. Though all stem from Old Chinese, they have all developed differences with each other.
Typographically, the vast majority of Sinitic languages useSinographs. However, some varieties, such asDungan andHokkien, have alternative scripts, namelyCyrillic andLatin alphabets. Even between varieties which use Sinographs, characters are repurposed or invented to cover for the difference in vocabulary. Examples include靚; 'pretty' in Yue,[71]𠊎; 'I', 'me' in Hakka,[72]即; 'this' in Hokkien,[73]覅; 'to not want' in Wu,[45]莫; 'do not' in Xiang, and嘎; 'ill-tempered' in Mandarin.[74][25] Note that both traditional and simplified characters can be used to write any lect.
Phonologically speaking, though all Sinitic languages possesstones, their contours and the total number of tones vary wildly, fromShanghainese, which can be analysed to have only two tones,[45] toBobainese, which has ten.[75] Sinitic languages also vary wildly in their phonological inventories and phonotactics. Take for instance/mɭɤŋ/ (門兒; 'door (diminutive)') seen in Pingdingnese,[21] or/tʃɦɻʷəi/ (水; 'water') of Xuanzhounese,[76] which both show syllables which do not follow the (single) consonant-glide-vowel-consonant syllable structure of more well-known lects. Tone sandhi is also a feature which not all lects share. Cantonese, for instance, only has a very weak system,[77] whereas Wu varieties not only have complex, intricate systems, which affect almost all syllables, but also uses it to mark for grammaticalpart of speech.[45][46] Take for instance, this simplified analysis of Suzhounese tone sandhi:[78]
| chain length → ↓ 1st char tone cat | 2 char | 3 char | 4 char |
|---|---|---|---|
| dark level (1) | ˦ ꜉ | ˦ ˦ ꜉ | ˦ ˦ ˦ ꜉ |
| light level (2) | ˨ ˧ | ˨ ˧ ꜊ | ˨ ˧ ˦ ꜉ |
| rising (3) | ˥ ˩ | ˥ ˩ ꜌ | ˥ ˩ ˩ ꜌ |
| dark departing (5) | ˥˨ ˧ | ˥˨ ˧ ꜊ | ˥˨ ˧ ˦ ꜉ |
| light departing (6) | ˨˧ ˩ | ˨˧ ˩ ꜌ | ˨˧ ˩ ˩ ꜌ |
| chain length → | 2 char | 3 char | 4 char | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd char tone cat | 1st char darkness | |||
| level (1, 2) | dark (7) | ˦ ˨˧ | ˦ ˨˧ ꜊ | ˦ ˨˧ ˦ ꜉ |
| light (8) | ˨ ˧ | ˨ ˧ ꜊ | ˨ ˧ ˦ ꜉ | |
| rising (3) | dark (7) | ˥ ˥˩ | ˥ ˥˩ ꜌ | ˥ ˥˩ ˩ ꜌ |
| light (8) | ˨ ˥˩ | ˨ ˥˩ ꜌ | ˨ ˥˩ ˩ ꜌ | |
| departing (5, 6) | dark (7) | ˥ ˥˨˧ | ˥ ˥˨ ˧ | ˥ ˥˨ ˨ ˧ |
| light (8) | ˨ ˥˨˧ | ˨ ˥˨ ˧ | ˨ ˥˨ ˨ ˧ | |
| checked (7, 8) | dark (7) | ˦ ˦ | ˦ ˦ ꜉ | ˦ ˦ ˦ ˨ |
| light (8) | ˧ ˦ | ˧ ˦ ꜉ | ˧ ˦ ˨ ꜋ | |
Disregarding phonology, grammar is the feature of Sinitic languages which differ the most. The majority of Sinitic languages do not possess tenses, though exceptions include Northern Wu lects such as Shanghainese andSuzhounese, though it is largely breaking down in Shanghainese due to Mandarin influence.[46][79] Sinitic languages generally also have no case marking, though lects such as Linxianese and Hengshannese do possess case particles, with the latter expressing it through tone change.[80][81] Sinitic languages generally have SVO word order and possess classifiers.
Verb usage may be different between Sinitic languages. Notice the double verb marking seen in lects such asBeijingese, in these sentences meaning "today I go to Guangzhou":[82]
今 天
Jīntiān
today
到
dào
arrive
廣 州
Guǎngzhōu
Guangzhou
去
qù
go
{今 天} 我 到 {廣 州} 去
{Jīntiān} wǒ dào {Guǎngzhōu} qù
today 1sg arrive Guangzhou go
今 阿
cin1-a1
today
廣 州
kuaon3-cieu1
Guangzhou
去
chi5
go
{今 阿} 我 {廣 州} 去
{cin1-a1} ngeu4 {kuaon3-cieu1} chi5
today 1sg Guangzhou go
Sinitic languages tend to vary greatly in how they mark indirect objects. The area which varies tends to be the placement of the indirect and direct objects.[10][21]
Mandarinic, Xiang, Hui, and Min languages often place the indirect object (IO) before the direct object (DO). Some lects have switched to IO-DO structure due to Mandarin influence, such asNanchangese andShanghainese, though Shanghainese also has the alternative word order.
Taiyuanese: 給 kei53 give 一 iəʔ2 one 書。 su11 book 給 我 一 本 書。 kei53 ɣə53 iəʔ2 pəŋ53 su11 give 1SG one CL book "Give me a book."
|
Nanchangese: 接 ꜀tɕia lend 三 ꜀san three 鍋。 ꜀wo pot {你 人} 接 了 佢 三 隻 鍋。 {꜂n len} ꜀tɕia le ꜂tɕie ꜀san tsaʔ꜆ ꜀wo 2SG.POL lend PERF 3SG three CL pot "You lent him three pots."
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On the other hand, Gan, Wu, Hakka, and Yue languages tend to place the DO in front of the IO.
Shanghainese (Wugniu): 撥 peq give 鞋 子 gha - tsy shoe 撥 對 {鞋 子} 我。 peq te {gha - tsy} ngu give CL shoe 1SG "Give me a pair of shoes."
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Hong Kong Hakka (Lau's Romanization):[83] 分 bín give 麪 包 mèn báu bread 分 塊 {麪 包} 𠊎。 bín kuài {mèn báu} ngāi give CL bread 1SG "Give me a piece of bread."
|
Like other East Asian languages such asJapanese andKorean, Sinitic languages have a system ofclassifers, however, use of classifiers vary greatly in features such asdefiniteness.[21] In Cantonese, for instance, they can be used to mark possession, which is rare in Sinitic while common in Southeast Asia.[10]
個 and隻 are the most common generic classifiers cross-linguistically.[10] As previously mentioned, Mandarinic languages tend to have fewer classifiers whereas the Southern non-Mandarinic varieties tend to have more.[21]
Sinitic languages can vary greatly in their system ofdemonstratives.[21]Standard Mandarin and other Northeastern varieties have a two-way system:這;zhè (proximal) and那;nà (distal), but this is not the only system found in Sinitic languages.
Wuhannese has a neutral demonstrative, which can be used regardless of the distance to the deictic center.[84][85] Similar systems are found in Northern Wu lects such as Suzhounese andNingbonese.[46][21]
生
sən55
unripe
，
熟
səu213
ripe
nɤ35 sɿ35 sən55 ti {} nɤ35 sɿ35 səu213 ti
DEM COP unripe P {} DEM COP ripe P
In the above sentence,/nɤ³⁵/ can be translated as both 'this' and 'that'. Though Wuhannese has this system of a one-term neutral system, it also has a two-way proximal-distal system. This is the same for most other lects with a one-term system.
Even within two-way systems, which is the most common system, terms could have developed to mean the opposite distance from the deitic center. Cantonese嗰;go² (distal) and Shanghainese搿;geq (proximal) are both etymologically from個, for instance.[71][45]
Many Sinitic languages have three-way systems, but the three distances are not always the same ones. For instance, whereas Guangshan Mandarin has a person-oriented proximal, medial, and distal system, Xinyu Gan has a distance-oriented close, proximal, and distal system. Gan especially has many varieties with a three-way system, sometimes even marked with tone and vowel length rather than just changing the term used.[21][86]
A small number of varieties possess even four- or five-term demonstrative systems. Take for instance the following:[21]
| Dongxiang | Zhangshu | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | ꜀ko | kọ꜆ |
| Proximal | ꜁ko | ko꜆ |
| Distal | ꜀e | ꜃hɛ |
| Yonder | ꜁e | ꜃hɛ̣ |
These two lects use tone change and vowel length respectively to distinguish between the four demonstratives.
{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help){{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)Sino-Tibetan branches | |||||
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| WesternHimalayas (Himachal, Uttarakhand,Nepal,Sikkim) |
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| EasternHimalayas (Tibet,Bhutan,Arunachal) | |||||
| Myanmar and Indo- Burmese border |
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| East andSoutheast Asia |
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| Dubious (possible isolates,Arunachal) |
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| Proposed groupings | |||||
| Proto-languages | |||||
Italics indicates single languages that are also considered to be separate branches. | |||||
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