Southern Min ( simplified Chinese : 闽南语 ; traditional Chinese : 閩南語 ; pinyin : Mǐnnányǔ ; Pe̍h-ōe-jī : Bân-lâm-gí/gú ; lit. 'Southern Min language'), Minnan ( Mandarin pronunciation: [mìn.nǎn] ) or Banlam ( Min Nan Chinese pronunciation: [bàn.lǎm] ), is a group of linguistically similar and historically related Chinese languages that form a branch of Min Chinese spoken in Fujian (especially the Minnan region ), most of Taiwan (many citizens are descendants of settlers from Fujian), Eastern Guangdong , Hainan , and Southern Zhejiang . Southern Min dialects are also spoken by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora , most notably in Southeast Asia , such as Singapore , Malaysia , the Philippines , Indonesia , Brunei , Southern Thailand , Myanmar , Cambodia , Southern and Central Vietnam , as well as major cities in the United States , including San Francisco , Los Angeles and New York City . Minnan is the most widely-spoken branch of Min, with approximately 48 million speakers as of 2017–2018.
40-635: Teochew , also known as Teo-Swa (or Chaoshan ), is a Southern Min language spoken by the Teochew people in the Chaoshan region of eastern Guangdong and by their diaspora around the world. It is sometimes referred to as Chiuchow , its Cantonese rendering, due to English romanization by colonial officials and explorers. It is closely related to Hokkien , as it shares some cognates and phonology with Hokkien. Teochew preserves many Old Chinese pronunciations and vocabulary that have been lost in some of
80-794: A clearly associated etymological character, including: Teochew shares characters with Hokkien for cognate words, but it is also influenced by the Cantonese written tradition . There are two principal romanization systems for Teochew: While Peng'im has some presence in academic works published in PRC, many publications on Teochew use their custom IPA-based romanizations. 買 bói bhoi [ᵐ̥boi 鵝 gô gho ᵑ̊ɡo 來 lāi lai ⁿ̥ɺai 食 tsia̍h ziah tsiaʔ] 買 鵝 來 食 bói gô lāi tsia̍h bhoi2 gho5 lai7 ziah8 [ᵐ̥boi ᵑ̊ɡo ⁿ̥ɺai tsiaʔ] "buy geese to eat" Teochew, like other Southern Min varieties,
120-407: A large extent. On the other hand, variants such as Datian , Zhongshan , and Qiong - Lei have historical linguistic roots with Hokkien, but are significantly divergent from it in terms of phonology and vocabulary, and thus have almost no mutual intelligibility with Hokkien. Linguists tend to classify them as separate languages. Southern Min dialects are spoken in southern Fujian , specifically in
160-527: A later migration from Zhangzhou. Linguistically, it lies between Teochew and Amoy. In southwestern Fujian , the local variants in Longyan and Zhangping form a separate division of Southern Min on their own. Among ethnic Chinese inhabitants of Penang , Malaysia and Medan , Indonesia , a distinct form based on the Zhangzhou dialect has developed. In Penang , it is called Penang Hokkien while across
200-754: A medial glide, a nucleus, usually in the form of a vowel , but can also be occupied by a syllabic consonant like [ŋ], and a final consonant . All the elements of the syllable except for the nucleus are optional, which means a vowel or a syllabic consonant alone can stand as a fully-fledged syllable. Southern Min The most widely spoken Southern Min language is Hokkien , which includes Taiwanese . Other varieties of Southern Min have significant differences from Hokkien, some having limited mutual intelligibility with it, others almost none. Teochew , Longyan , and Zhenan are said to have general mutual intelligibility with Hokkien, sharing similar phonology and vocabulary to
240-572: A part of Hokkien or an independent Southern Min variety. In the Namoa island , there are two dialects, both distinct from the mainland Teochew, with Western Namoa dialect inclining towards the Northern Teochew, and Eastern Namoa dialect showing Hokkien influence, as this part of the island was included in Zhangzhou prefecture in 16—19 centuries. Chawan dialect , spoken in Fujian along
280-585: A result of colonialism and assimilation to the dominant Cantonese culture. Teochew speakers are also found among overseas Chinese communities in Japan and the Western world (notably in the United States , Canada , Australia , United Kingdom , France and Italy ), a result of both direct emigration from Teochew to these nations and secondary emigration from Southeast Asia. In Singapore, Teochew remains
320-503: A result, whereas most varieties of Chinese can be treated as derived from Middle Chinese , the language described by rhyme dictionaries such as the Qieyun (601 AD), Min varieties contain traces of older distinctions. Linguists estimate that the oldest layers of Min dialects diverged from the rest of Chinese around the time of the Han dynasty . However, significant waves of migration from
360-614: Is a first language for most of the Hoklo people , the main ethnicity of Taiwan. The correspondence between language and ethnicity is not absolute, as some Hoklo have very limited proficiency in Southern Min while some non-Hoklo speak Southern Min fluently. There are many Southern Min speakers among overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia . Many ethnic Chinese immigrants to the region were Hoklo from southern Fujian and brought
400-638: Is a 1566 edition of the Tale of the Lychee Mirror , a folk drama written in a mixture of Teochew and Chinchew Hokkien . Teochew writing is neither standardized nor is widely used. In Imperial China , most writing was conducted in Classical Chinese , while vernacular writing was only used in novels, songbooks and opera scripts. After the Xinhai revolution , only written Mandarin was supported by
440-567: Is classified as Hainanese and is not mutually intelligible with mainstream Southern Min or Teochew. Hainanese is classified in some schemes as part of Southern Min and in other schemes as separate. Puxian Min was originally based on the Quanzhou dialect , but over time became heavily influenced by Eastern Min , eventually losing intelligibility with Southern Min. The Southern Min dialects spoken in Taiwan, collectively known as Taiwanese ,
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#1732780795872480-413: Is known as Hokkien , Hokkienese, Fukien, or Fookien in Southeast Asia and is mostly mutually intelligible with Hokkien spoken elsewhere. Many Southeast Asian ethnic Chinese also originated in the Chaoshan region of Guangdong and speak Teochew language , the variant of Southern Min from that region, particularly Thailand , Cambodia , Southern Vietnam , Malaysia , Singapore , Indonesia , etc. In
520-582: Is known as 閩南文 (Bân-lâm-bûn), while in Taiwan , it is known as 台文 (Tâi-bûn). The Han Chinese characters are known in mainland China and Taiwan as 漢字 (Hàn-jī / Hàn-lī). In Malaysia and Singapore, the Chinese characters are sometimes known as 唐儂字 / 唐人字 (Tn̂g-lâng-jī / Tn̂g-lâng-lī). In the Philippines, the Chinese characters are known as 咱儂字 / 咱人字 (Lán-nâng-dī) or 漢文字 (Hàm-bûn-dī). The Min homeland of Fujian
560-680: Is mainly spoken. The character 陸 has multiple pronunciations in Southern Min: the reading le̍k is vernacular, it is common in Teochew, but rarely used in Hokkien and Hai Lok Hong itself; the reading lio̍k (Hokkien, Hai Lok Hong) or lo̍k (Teochew) is literary and commonly used in Hokkien and Hai Lok Hong, but not Teochew, yet its Teochew rendering is the source of English Hai Lok Hong . The Language Atlas of China classifies Hai Lok Hong as part of Teochew . Other classifications pinpoint
600-500: Is not mutually intelligible with Mandarin, Cantonese or Shanghainese. It has only limited intelligibility with Hokkien. Even within the Teochew dialects, there is substantial variation in phonology between different regions and between different Teochew communities overseas. The dialects of Teochew include: Some classifications consider the Hai Lok Hong dialect a part of Teochew (as the third branch), while others consider it
640-653: Is one of the few modern Sinitic languages which have voiced obstruents (stops, fricatives and affricates); however, unlike Wu and Xiang Chinese , the Teochew voiced stops and fricatives did not evolve from Middle Chinese voiced obstruents, but from nasals . The voiced stops [b] and [ɡ] and also [l] are voicelessly prenasalized [ᵐ̥b] , [ᵑ̊ɡ] , [ⁿ̥ɺ] , respectively. The voiced affricate dz , initial in such words as jī 字 ri (/dzi˩/), jĭ 二 ri (/dzi˧˥/), jiâng 然 riang (/dziaŋ˥/), jia̍k 若 riag (/dziak˦/) loses its affricate property with some younger speakers abroad, and
680-748: Is related to Teochew and Hokkien , its exact classification in relation to them is disputed. The word Haklau ( 學佬 Ha̍k-láu , also written as 福佬 ) is the Southern Min pronuciation of Hoklo , originally a Hakka exonym for the Southern Min speakers, including Hoklo and Teochew people . Although originally it was perceived as a derogatory term, speakers of the Hai Lok Hong Min in Shanwei self-identify as Haklau and distinguish themselves from Teochew people. Overseas Hai Lok Hong people still do not like this appellation. Historically,
720-513: Is relaxed to [z]. Unlike in Hokkien, nasal initials in Teochew are not generally considered allophones of the voiced plosives, as nasals are relatively more common in Teochew and have less usage restrictions. For example, Teochew allows for syllables like nge̍k 逆 ngêg , which are impossible in Hokkien. In Southern dialects of Teochew, labial initials (/p/, /pʰ/, /b/, /m/) have labiodental allophones ([pf], [pfʰ], [bv], [mv~ɱ]) before /-u-/. Syllables in Teochew contain an onset consonant,
760-606: Is synonymous to "Chinese people". Because of the widespread influence of the Tang culture during the Great Tang dynasty, there are today still many Southern Min pronunciations of words shared by the Sino-xenic pronunciations of Vietnamese , Korean and Japanese languages. Both Hokkien and Chaoshan ( Teochew and Shantou dialects ) have romanized writing systems and also respective Chinese characters. In mainland China , it
800-491: Is the most widely spoken form of Southern Min, including Amoy dialect and Taiwanese . Both of these developed as a combination of Quanzhou and Zhangzhou speech. Varieties in South-East Asia include Singaporean Hokkien , Penang Hokkien , Southern Peninsular Malaysian Hokkien , Medan Hokkien , and Philippine Hokkien . Teo-Swa or Chaoshan speech ( 潮汕片 ) is a closely related variant of Southern Min that includes
840-710: The Chaoshan region of eastern Guangdong province are collectively known as Teo-Swa or Chaoshan. Chaoshan Min is of great importance in the Southeast Asian Chinese diaspora , particularly in Malaysia , Thailand , Cambodia , Vietnam , Sumatra , and West Kalimantan . The Philippines variant is mostly from the Quanzhou area as most of their forefathers are from the aforementioned area. The Southern Min language variant spoken around Shanwei and Haifeng differs markedly from Teochew and may represent
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#1732780795872880-530: The Kekyeo dialect , Teochew and Swatow dialects, and some consider Haklau Min to also be part of. It has limited mutual intelligibility with Hokkien, though they share some cognates with each other. Chaoshan Min is significantly different from Hokkien in both pronunciation and vocabulary, and mutual intelligibility is difficult. Southern Min has one of the most diverse phonologies of Chinese varieties, with more consonants than Mandarin or Cantonese. Vowels, on
920-518: The Malacca Strait in Medan, an almost identical variant is known as Medan Hokkien . There are two or three divisions of Southern Min, depending on the criteria for Leizhou and Hainanese inclusion: More recently, Kwok (2018: 157) has proposed an alternative classification, with a divergent Northern branch that includes Quanzhou dialect but not Zhangzhou dialect , as shown below: Hokkien
960-561: The North China Plain occurred. These include: Jerry Norman identifies four main layers in the vocabulary of modern Min varieties: Haklau Min Haklau ( simplified Chinese : 学佬话／福佬话 ; traditional Chinese : 學佬話／福佬話 ), or Hai Lok Hong ( 海陆丰话 ; 海陸豐話 ), also known as Haifeng dialect ( 海丰话 ; 海豐話 ) or Hailufeng Minnan , is a variety of Southern Min spoken in Shanwei , Guangdong province, China . While it
1000-664: The Philippines , Philippine Hokkien is reportedly the native or heritage language of up to 98.7% of the Chinese Filipino community in the Philippines, among whom it is known in Hokkien Chinese : 咱人話 / 咱儂話 ; Pe̍h-ōe-jī : Lán-nâng-ōe / Lán-lâng-ōe / Nán-nâng-ōe ; lit. 'our people's language'. Southern Min speakers form the majority of Chinese in Singapore, with Hokkien being
1040-590: The Shantou city , the urban Swatow dialect is perceived as "energetic", "gentle", but also "snobbish" or "pretentious" by speakers of other dialects; the Chenghai dialect (similar to urban Chaozhou dialect) is perceived as "soft", "cute", and "high-pitched"; the Teoyeo dialect is perceived as "harsh", "aggressive" and "countrified". Written Southern Min is known since at least the 16th century. The earliest known work
1080-786: The cities of Xiamen , Quanzhou , Zhangzhou , and much of Longyan , hence the name. In addition, varieties of Southern Min are spoken in several southeastern counties of Wenzhou in Zhejiang , the Zhoushan archipelago off Ningbo in Zhejiang , the town of Sanxiang at the southern periphery of Zhongshan in Guangdong , and in the Chaoshan (Teo-swa) region in Guangdong. The variant spoken in Leizhou , Guangdong as well as in Hainan
1120-616: The Guangdong border, is quite different from other southern dialects of Hokkien . It has some lexical influence from Teochew and relatively higher mutual intelligibility with it, yet in other aspects it clusters more with Hokkien than Teochew. The main criterion in the classification of Teochew dialects is the presence or absence of the vowel /ɯ/ . It is found in Northern Teochew in words like hṳ̂ 魚 he "fish" and sṳ̄ 事 se "thing; matter". Southern Teochew has /u/ instead ( hû 魚 hu , sū 事 su ). Hai Lok Hong and Eastern Namoa dialects have /i/ or /u/ instead, depending on
1160-695: The Hai Lok Hong region was not a part of Teochew prefecture ( 潮州府 , the region currently known as Teo-Swa or Chaoshan ), but was included in the primarily Hakka -speaking Huizhou prefecture ( 惠州府 ). Modern Huizhou city (particularly the Huidong County ) also has a Haklau-speaking minority. The word Hai Lok Hong ( 海陸豐 Hái-lio̍k-hong ) is a portmanteau of Hai Hong ( 海豐 , Mandarin Haifeng ) and Lok Hong ( 陸豐 , Mandarin Lufeng ), where it
1200-403: The ancestral language of many Chinese Singaporeans , with Chinese of Teochew descent making up second largest Chinese group in Singapore, after the Hoklo . Despite this many Teochew people, particularly the younger generations, are shifting towards English and Mandarin as their main spoken language. This is due to the Singapore government's stringent bilingual policy that promotes English as
1240-700: The etymology of the word ( hî 魚 hi , but sū 事 su ), similarly to the Chiangchew Hokkien . Southern Teochew may be further divided into Huilai—Puning dialects and Teoyeo dialects, based on their tone contours. The prestige dialects of Teochew all belong to the Northern branch. The Northern Teochew dialects are mutually intelligible between each other, but less so with the Southern branch. Various stereotypes and cultural traits are associated with different Teochew dialects. For instance, within
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1280-554: The government, while speakers of other Sinitic languages, including Teochew, remaining largely illiterate in their own tongues. Teochew rime dictionaries appeared relatively late, the earliest of them being "Fifteen consonants of Teochew language" ( 潮語十五音 , 1911) by Chio Ju-lim ( 蔣儒林 ) and "Fifteen consonants of Teochew sound" ( 潮聲十五音 , 1913) by Teo See-tiang ( 張世珍 ). Most of the Teochew vocabulary can be traced back to Old Chinese, and thus can be written using Chinese characters. There are different ways to write words that do not have
1320-697: The language to what is now present-day Malaysia and Singapore (formerly British Malaya , the Straits Settlements , and British Borneo ), Indonesia (the former Dutch East Indies ), the Philippines (former Spanish East Indies and later, US Philippine Islands (P.I.) ), Brunei (former part of British Borneo ), Southern Thailand , Myanmar ( British Burma ), Cambodia (former French Cambodia of French Indochina ), Southern Vietnam (former French Cochinchina of French Indochina ) and Central Vietnam (former French Annam of French Indochina ). In general, Southern Min from southern Fujian
1360-524: The largest group and the second largest being Teochew . Despite the similarities, the two groups are rarely viewed together as "Southern Min". The variants of Southern Min spoken in Zhejiang province are most akin to that spoken in Quanzhou. The variants spoken in Taiwan are similar to the three Fujian variants and are collectively known as Taiwanese . Those Southern Min variants that are collectively known as "Hokkien" in Southeast Asia also originate from these variants. The variants of Southern Min in
1400-477: The official language of education, government and commerce and promotes Mandarin at the expense of other Chinese languages. Some Teochew assimilated with the larger Hokkien community and speak Hokkien rather than Teochew due to Hokkien's prominent role as a lingua franca previously among the Singaporean Chinese community. Teochew is a Southern Min language. As with other Sinitic languages , it
1440-575: The other hand, are more-or-less similar to those of Mandarin. In general, Southern Min dialects have five to six tones , and tone sandhi is extensive. There are minor variations within Hokkien, and the Teochew system differs somewhat more. Southern Min's nasal finals consist of /m/ , /n/ , /ŋ/ , and /~/ . Southern Min can trace its origins through the Tang dynasty , and it also has roots from earlier periods. Hokkien people call themselves " Tang people", ( Tn̂g-lâng 唐人 / 唐儂 ) which
1480-560: The other modern varieties of Chinese . As such, Teochew is described as one of the most conservative Chinese languages. Historically, the Teochew prefecture included modern prefecture-level cities of Chaozhou , Jieyang and Shantou . In China, this region is now known as Teoswa . Parts of the Hakka-speaking Meizhou city, such as Dabu County and Fengshun , were also parts of the Teochew prefecture and contain pocket communities of Teochew speakers. As Teochew region
1520-601: The states of Johor , Malacca , Penang , Kedah and Selangor with significant minorities in Sarawak ) and Indonesia (especially in West Kalimantan ). Waves of migration from Teochew region to Hong Kong , especially after the communist victory of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, has also resulted in the formation of a community there, although most descendants now primarily speak Cantonese and English as
1560-578: Was one of the major sources of Chinese emigration to Southeast Asia during the 18th to 20th centuries, a considerable Overseas Chinese community in that region is Teochew-speaking. In particular, the Teochew people settled in significant numbers in Cambodia , Thailand and Laos , where they form the largest Chinese sub-language group. Additionally, there are many Teochew-speakers among Chinese communities in Vietnam , Singapore , Malaysia (especially in
1600-609: Was opened to Han Chinese settlement by the defeat of the Minyue state by the armies of Emperor Wu of Han in 110 BC. The area features rugged mountainous terrain, with short rivers that flow into the South China Sea . Most subsequent migration from north to south China passed through the valleys of the Xiang and Gan rivers to the west, so that Min varieties have experienced less northern influence than other southern groups. As
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