Cantonese is a Sinitic language of the Yue group, spoken by about eighty-five million people, mainly in the southern Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Hainan and Hunan and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and in Hong Kong and Macau. It is the de facto official language of Hong Kong alongside English and the co-official language of Macau alongside Portuguese, and large communities speak it abroad, including in the United States, Malaysia and Canada. It is written with traditional or simplified Chinese characters and has been written as a language of its own since the seventeenth century. The Standard Romanization of Cantonese was devised by Christian missionaries in southern China in 1888, building on a system by the missionary John Chalmers, and the Hong Kong government romanization descends from it.
Facts
Geography
Modern AreaSouthern China, Hong Kong and Macau, with communities in the United States, Malaysia, Canada, Vietnam, Australia, Singapore and Indonesia 1 Identity
Native ScriptTraditional and simplified Chinese characters, and the Latin alphabet 1 Origins
Language FamilySino-Tibetan, Sinitic, Yue, Yuehai 1 Liturgical role (class)Vernacular used liturgically 2 Connections
Attested in Region
Named or Composed in This Language
Source The Movie Database (TMDB): Once Upon a Time in China II
Originated In
Read in Region
Script Of
Cantonese is written with traditional and simplified Chinese characters.
Source Omniglot: Cantonese language page
In the Other Atlases
In Branch
Also in Language Atlas: the branch this subject belongs to.
Source Omniglot: Cantonese language page
Sources
1. Omniglot: Cantonese language page
At a glance box: Linguistic affliation
Linguistic affliation : Sino-Tibetan, Sinitic, Yue, Yuehai
At a glance box: Spoken in
Spoken in : China, USA, Malaysia, Canada, Vietnam, Australia, Singapore and Indonesia
At a glance box: Writing systems
Writing systems : Traditional Chinese script, Simplified Chinese script, Latin alphabet
Originated In: China, At a glance box: Status
Status : de facto official language in Hong Kong and Macau, and de facto provincial language in Guangdong Province
Attested in Region: China, At a glance box: Status
Status : de facto official language in Hong Kong and Macau, and de facto provincial language in Guangdong Province
Read in Region: China, At a glance box: Status
Status : de facto official language in Hong Kong and Macau, and de facto provincial language in Guangdong Province
View the Source2. Sunday Examiner (Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong): Cantonese Mass in Cambridge
Sunday Examiner (Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong)Report on the first Cantonese MassQuote, Report on the first Cantonese Mass
Though the Vietnamese priest does not speak or read the language, he celebrated the Mass entirely in Cantonese, which he learned to speak using phonetics.
The Movie Database (TMDB): Once Upon a Time in China II
The Movie Database (TMDB)Named or Composed in This Language: Once Upon a Time in China II, Facts panel: Original LanguageQuote, Named or Composed in This Language: Once Upon a Time in China II, Facts panel: Original Language
Original Language Cantonese
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