When China Rules the World

[webber]

that's like 20ys plan

 

[Brotherhood]

As I understand, the Chinese language script is known as 甲骨文 (jiăgŭwén) - literally "shell bone writing".

I believe Chinese is written with characters which are known as 漢字 [汉字] (hànzi). The characters were originally pictures of people, animals or other things, but over the centuries they have become increasingly stylised and no longer resemble the things they represent. Many characters have been combined with others to create new ones.

Until the early 20th century, Classical Chinese, 文言 (wényán), was the main form of writing in China. It was standardised during the late Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) and was also used in Korea, Japan and Vietnam before they developed their own writing systems.

In Classical Chinese most words were monosyllabic and written with a single character. However, during the 1920s a new form of written Chinese modelled on spoken Mandarin was developed. Most Chinese publications since then have been written in this form, which is known as 白話 [白话 ] (báihuà), though Classical Chinese constructions and especially proverbs are still used to some extent.

There are approximately 1,700 possible syllables in Mandarin, which compares with over 8,000 in English. As a result, there are many homophones - syllables which sound the same but mean different things. These are distinguished in written Chinese by using different characters for each one.

Homophones are a problem of language, not “script.” The root of this problem lies in the pronunciation of the language (yǔyīn), not in the different ways of spelling the words (cíxíng). Thus, it is inferred that the spoken word s can be unintelligible amongst groups, but not the characters since they are similar and so written correspondence amongst each other would possibly not be a problem.


Could I be a Chinese with sharper and more definable physiognomy?

OMG, anyother "copycat" get caught for stealing others article by adding a few of his own words as his "Chinese expert" showoff post.

Please have some self-respect, stop stealing others words as your own and stop pretending you know sh!t regarding Chinese languages

The script on these "oracle bones" is known as 甲骨文 (jiăgŭwén) - literally "shell bone writing". They were used for divination, a process which involved heating them then inspecting the resulting cracks to determine to answers to one's questions. The bones were then inscribed with details of the questions and the answers. Most of the questions involved hunting, warfare, the weather and the selection of auspicious days for ceremonies.

The Chinese writing system

Chinese is written with characters which are known as 漢字 [汉字] (hànzi). The characters were originally pictures of people, animals or other things, but over the centuries they have become increasingly stylised and no longer resemble the things they represent. Many characters have been combined with others to create new ones.

Until the early 20th century, Classical Chinese, 文言 (wényán), was the main form of writing in China. It was standardised during the late Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) and was also used in Korea, Japan and Vietnam before they developed their own writing systems.

In Classical Chinese most words were monosyllabic and written with a single character. However, during the 1920s a new form of written Chinese modelled on spoken Mandarin was developed. Most Chinese publications since then have been written in this form, which is known as 白話 [白话 ] (báihuà), though Classical Chinese constructions and especially proverbs are still used to some extent.

In spoken Chinese, words are made up of one, two or more syllables. Each of the syllables is written with a separate character. Each character has its own meaning, though many are used only in combination with other characters.

Every character is given exactly the same amount of space, no matter how complex it is. There are no spaces between characters and the characters which make up multi-syllable words are not grouped together, so when reading Chinese, you not only have to work out what the characters mean and how to pronounce them, but also which characters belong together.

Homophones

There are approximately 1,700 possible syllables in Mandarin, which compares with over 8,000 in English. As a result, there are many homophones - syllables which sound the same but mean different things. These are distinguished in written Chinese by using different characters for each one.

Not all the following characters are pronounced with the same tone, so to Chinese ears they sound different, but to Western ears they probably all sound the same. These syllables can be distinguished in speech from the context and because most of them usually appear in combination with other syllables.
Chinese script and language

 

[ChinaToday]

OMG, anyother "copycat" get caught for stealing others article by adding a few of his own words as his "Chinese expert" showoff post.

Please have some self-respect, stop stealing others words as your own and stop pretending you know sh!t regarding Chinese languages

The script on these "oracle bones" is known as 甲骨文 (jiăgŭwén) - literally "shell bone writing". They were used for divination, a process which involved heating them then inspecting the resulting cracks to determine to answers to one's questions. The bones were then inscribed with details of the questions and the answers. Most of the questions involved hunting, warfare, the weather and the selection of auspicious days for ceremonies.

The Chinese writing system

Chinese is written with characters which are known as 漢字 [汉字] (hànzi). The characters were originally pictures of people, animals or other things, but over the centuries they have become increasingly stylised and no longer resemble the things they represent. Many characters have been combined with others to create new ones.

Until the early 20th century, Classical Chinese, 文言 (wényán), was the main form of writing in China. It was standardised during the late Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) and was also used in Korea, Japan and Vietnam before they developed their own writing systems.

In Classical Chinese most words were monosyllabic and written with a single character. However, during the 1920s a new form of written Chinese modelled on spoken Mandarin was developed. Most Chinese publications since then have been written in this form, which is known as 白話 [白话 ] (báihuà), though Classical Chinese constructions and especially proverbs are still used to some extent.

In spoken Chinese, words are made up of one, two or more syllables. Each of the syllables is written with a separate character. Each character has its own meaning, though many are used only in combination with other characters.

Every character is given exactly the same amount of space, no matter how complex it is. There are no spaces between characters and the characters which make up multi-syllable words are not grouped together, so when reading Chinese, you not only have to work out what the characters mean and how to pronounce them, but also which characters belong together.

Homophones

There are approximately 1,700 possible syllables in Mandarin, which compares with over 8,000 in English. As a result, there are many homophones - syllables which sound the same but mean different things. These are distinguished in written Chinese by using different characters for each one.

Not all the following characters are pronounced with the same tone, so to Chinese ears they sound different, but to Western ears they probably all sound the same. These syllables can be distinguished in speech from the context and because most of them usually appear in combination with other syllables.
Chinese script and language

shhhhhhhhh you just ruined the reputation of the most respectable and good debater indian of this forum LOL

 

[Tiki Tam Tam]

Regarding your post 148, it's another of those all too frequent attempts at applying theories developed out of the Western context to areas of the globe where the situation is drastically different. China uses characters instead of alphabets, and characters are independent of their pronunciations. Also China is far larger than any European country, and for thousands of years the only practical method for communication from one corner of China to another is through letters. So it's both ridiculous and meaningless to ask whether the spoken words are mutually intelligible. Because spoken language itself was not a practical way of communication across China, and what was practical, namely the written language, was also mutually intelligible.

Thank you for the most civilised answer that I have received so far

That was the closest to the explanation.

It is true that the Chinese Empire, if you will, spread over a span that was larger than most, it raises some more interesting questions that you may like to help clarify.

Some of the basic denominators of my query emanates from the assumption that it would be a stretch to believe that such a large tract of land mass would be inhabited by one race, with one culture and thereby having one language. And as I learn from the various posts here, Mandarin was there from 2000 odd BC (?).

It would be interesting to note that so far back in time, while others were but small, unrelated tribes in the other continents, in what is called China today, there was one homogeneous lot of people having a similar culture and language.

Language is a binding force and it is said, that it is this ability to communicate that gives rise to one people and one culture.

If that were so that Mandarin was there from 2000 odd BC, there would be no requirement for the various invasions since one would not invade their own people, or would they?

This is a contradiction that I see.

I look forward to your reply that would clarify this and make me understand the issue better.

I would also say that it is your clarification that I await, and would ignore all the clutter that otherwise is generated.

In so far as extract that I may append, most are from my hard disks, that I have stored during my readings and not for all have I kept the links. It would be a loss not to append it here (even if without links because of the reason, that go into discussion without proper authority it would make the issue even more un-understandable). It will be noticed that the wordings are hardly changed and so it is easy for anyone to Google and discover)

 

[below_freezing]

Some certain losers should ask, is India even a nation? After all, its common language has been imposed by invaders - English, written with an invader imposed script - Latin, and spoken mostly by the rich, pale skinned upper class.

This is in stark contrast to China, where our common language was there from the beginning and formalized by Sun Yatsen, written with a common script in existence for hundreds of years and upgraded by Sun Yatsen and Mao Zedong, and spoken by the lowest of the poor as well as the richest of the rich. Businessmen from Shanghai and politicians in Beijing speak the same Chinese as does a farmer in Guizhou. However, in India, the language you speak directly reflects your caste and social position. The upper class are English and Hindi speaking, pale skinned Brahmin North Indians who dominate politics in India. The poor are the Bengali/Tamil speaking, dark skinned urban poor who die before age 40 due to disease and systematic violence.

 

[milvipes]

Most Mongols I've met speak better Mandarin than most Cantonese & Taiwanese folks.
Which is amazing, given the awkward grammar of Altaic languages.

 

[ao333]

We have gone through all this.

check the Tibet thread.

The Chinese ate humble pie on this since each point was rubbished by me from scholarly tomes.

I presume that after the Japanese Occupation of China and the Rape of Nanking, there would be many there who would have more Japanese blood than the Chinese in say, Inner Mongolia.

Does that prove anything?

It's unfair to troll the Chinese kids here. Let me set things straight.

The preceived occupation of China lasted for 8 years (less than 5 in Nanjing). Compared to the century-long de jure British rule (after occupation and surrender) of India, the number of babies produced from anglo fathers and Hindu mothers likely outnumbers Japanese soldiers in China. More importantly, Indian women who were married to British aristocrats felt honored to conceive their babies, which enjoyed a higher caste than "full" Indian babies while Chinese women selflessly aborted their Japanese-fathered babies, suffering and ashamed of their declined, national prowess.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Japanese_Occupation_-_Map.jpg
India Timeline: The British Raj in India

Furthermore, it is noteworthy that the HIV prevalence rate in India is significantly higher than China, indicating that the population is widely knowledge-deprived. The society collectively, is behind.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2155rank.html

As for the genetic differences between Chinese and Indians, please consult the global IQ statistics below:

IQ and the Wealth of Nations - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is evident to conclude then, that the average is Indian is 19% less intellegent, HIV prevalent, socially degenerated, materially destituted and more importantly, carries more foreign genes than the average Chinese.

And yes, it proves that Indians are an inferior sect of humanity which should be eradicated from the earth.

 

[oct605032048]

Most Mongols I've met speak better Mandarin than most Cantonese & Taiwanese folks.
Which is amazing, given the awkward grammar of Altaic languages.

Why amazing? You should take it for granted.

 

[Tiki Tam Tam]

It's unfair to troll the Chinese kids here. Let me set things straight.

The preceived occupation of China lasted for 8 years (less than 5 in Nanjing). Compared to the century-long de jure British rule (after occupation and surrender) of India, the number of babies produced from anglo fathers and Hindu mothers likely outnumbers Japanese soldiers in China. More importantly, Indian women who were married to British aristocrats felt honored to conceive their babies, which enjoyed a higher caste than "full" Indian babies while Chinese women selflessly aborted their Japanese-fathered babies, suffering and ashamed of their declined, national prowess.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Japanese_Occupation_-_Map.jpg
India Timeline: The British Raj in India

Furthermore, it is noteworthy that the HIV prevalence rate in India is significantly higher than China, indicating that the population is widely knowledge-deprived. The society collectively, is behind.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2155rank.html

As for the genetic differences between Chinese and Indians, please consult the global IQ statistics below:

IQ and the Wealth of Nations - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is evident to conclude then, that the average is Indian is 19% less intellegent, HIV prevalent, socially degenerated, materially destituted and more importantly, carries more foreign genes than the average Chinese.

And yes, it proves that Indians are an inferior sect of humanity which should be eradicated from the earth.

Your post is like something that has just landed from outer space.

No connection with anything and at least not to the post you replied to!

 

[Tiki Tam Tam]

Some certain losers should ask, is India even a nation? After all, its common language has been imposed by invaders - English, written with an invader imposed script - Latin, and spoken mostly by the rich, pale skinned upper class.

This is in stark contrast to China, where our common language was there from the beginning and formalized by Sun Yatsen, written with a common script in existence for hundreds of years and upgraded by Sun Yatsen and Mao Zedong, and spoken by the lowest of the poor as well as the richest of the rich. Businessmen from Shanghai and politicians in Beijing speak the same Chinese as does a farmer in Guizhou. However, in India, the language you speak directly reflects your caste and social position. The upper class are English and Hindi speaking, pale skinned Brahmin North Indians who dominate politics in India. The poor are the Bengali/Tamil speaking, dark skinned urban poor who die before age 40 due to disease and systematic violence.

Generalised as usual. Nothing concrete.

Any link to "our common language was there from the beginning and formalized by Sun Yatsen, written with a common script in existence for hundreds of years". And that common language is Mandarin, right?

"However, in India, the language you speak directly reflects your caste and social position. The upper class are English and Hindi speaking, pale skinned Brahmin North Indians who dominate politics in India. The poor are the Bengali/Tamil speaking, dark skinned urban poor who die before age 40 due to disease and systematic violence."

How cute.

Same stuff like your common language being there for hundred of years?

Ambedkar was a Dalit and he was one of those who wrote the Indian Constitution. He spoke English. And I am talking of as back as 1947 and before. He was not a high caste Hindu. So that much for your knowledge and pontification.

Tamil and Bengalis dark skinned a die before 40? Heard of jayalalitha (Tamil) and Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. She is pale skinned and well beyond 40.
Heard of Jyoti Basu, the Chief Minister of Bengal? He was Bengali, pale skinned and died at 96.

Boom! There goes one more of your pious pontifications and grandstanding!

 

[localoca]

And we don't really care if you little pipsqueak believe it or not.

Don't mind Indian trolls and flame baiters, they can't stop China...

 

[ChineseTiger1986]

Most Mongols I've met speak better Mandarin than most Cantonese & Taiwanese folks.
Which is amazing, given the awkward grammar of Altaic languages.

The Taiwanese Mandarin is ok, just the funny accent is very obvious from some people.

But most elite Pan-Blue Taiwanese politicians spoke the Mandarin very well.

 

[CardSharp]

What is the other significant dialect of Taiwan, Taichanese?

 

[ChineseTiger1986]

What is the other significant dialect of Taiwan, Taichanese?

Mostly from Fujian, i've heard the accent of the Fujianese, they are similar to Taiwanese.

 

[milvipes]

Taiwanese Minnan is most similar to Xiamen Minnan, even though most Taiwanese are from Quanzhou & Zhangzhou. The other significant dialect is Hakka.
People from southern Taiwan, when speaking Mandarin, tend to have strong Minnan accent, but people from northern Taiwan have a weird bastard accent (that is being imitated by most Chinese artists) found nowhere else in China, not even Fujian.
And please don't lump us with northern Fujian (Fuzhou). Like many hard-headed Cantos, they tend to form their own little exclusive communities, keeping other Chinese at arms' length as if we were some sort lepers. Whereas Taiwanese tend to interact more with other Mandarin speakers.