When you lose a language…

A topic that often comes up in my curriculum and pedagogy courses is Medium of Instruction. Prior to the 1997 handover, English was the favored language of education [EMI] in primary and secondary schools.    After the handover, a mess occurred.  Some schools switched to teaching in Chinese [CMI] while a few kept English.  Regardless of the problems of language learning this created, it quickly resulted in EMI schools rising to the top of rankings and desire of parents – particularly because the universities of Hong Kong [namely HKU] teach in English.  English was, and often still is, viewed as the language to success in Hong Kong.  But with the ever growing influence of Mainland China in the world, a newfound identity, and a desire to restore ties with the Mainland, Putongua [Mandarin] has also become a medium of instruction in some primary schools.  So, EMI & PMI & CMI…students could potientially recieve their education through three different languages.   

Well, “three” different languages in a way.  Cantonese and Putongua have an odd relationship.  Cantonese speakers always seem down on the language.    I’ve heard officials from the government say Cantonese is only a dialect.  When I tell them I am learning they just say, “Oh…learn Mandarin.”  They say that Cantonese has no writing, despite the fact when I teach and use a Cantonese dictionary to help Putongua speakers build vocabulary they shake their head and say, “um..that’s Cantonese.”  Regardless of my feelings about the categorization of Cantonese as language or whatnot, this story gets a little more interesting.

Based on the student’s responses on this day, I posed a question: What if Hong Kong schools stopped using Cantonese as a medium of instruction?  What if Hong Kong officials decided to only teach in PMI and EMI?  Their answer baffled me.  They would be perfectly fine with it, whatever needs to be done so that their kids can make money.  I asked if they saw any problem with this – if it might be a problem if their kids or grandkids didn’t know Cantonese?  Aside from problems communicating with them, no problem at all.  In the end, only one student said that she thought it would be a little sad if the Cantonese language died out.

Having taught in areas where languages are dying and people are desparately trying to preserve their cultures against an ever encroaching world, this really struck me.  I found myself defending Cantonese in the class.  I’ve never been in a place where a group of people said their native language wasn’t important.  I know that this isn’t probably the feeling of the majority of Hong Kongers, but an entire class decided it would be ok to lose their language if it meant securing economic prosperity.  Even after writing this, I’m still flabergasted.  It just makes me sad.

Language is fun…ish…

As my crash course in Cantonese is finishing up, I realized that Cantonese may be the most difficult language on the earth.  Regardless of linguistic arguments as to what actually is the most complicated, this language is almost impossible for me.  At its basic level it has six tones (some linguists argue from 9-12 tones), which are very important.  For some items, context might help a speaker understand what you meant – but in others, not at all.  A minor vowel change could also be the difference in getting chicken (gei) or dog (gau) in your meal.  As someone who likes to mumble, this can be problematic.  At least I’ll eat anything that is put in front of me. 

While in class, I sound sing songy and just plain goofy – but, I can usually get close to an intelligible phrase or request.  Turns out, unfortunately, that without a readily handy dandy typed sheet of paper, my brain chooses one of the requirements (vocab, tone, word order/grammar) correctly and abandons the rest, leaving me to spew out sounds that only Teletubbies understand.  That said, I have had, understandably, mixed experiences in my efforts to use Cantonese around Hong Kong.

Once, while in a market, I decided I needed some fruit goodness.  I geared up, practiced the phrases in my head, ran through the possiblities of what the grocer might say back – stepped forward and, in beautifulish Cantonese, asked for five oranges with the correct classifier.  She smiled, answered back the price and I finished the transaction.  Beautiful moment.  Not a day before, however, my success was craptastic.  While walking home late one evening, I turned to ask a local Cantonese person where the bus to Sha Tin was located.  In my best Canto, I muddily executed the request.  Immediately, he turned and said, ‘I speak English…’  Saddened and embarrassed, I asked where the bus that might take me to Sha Tin was located.  He answered, “I don’t know.” and walked away.

That said, the hall staff here at school just love the fact I try.  I’ve been praised heavily for my m-goi (thank you) and my jou san’s (good morning) are met with feverish waves from the desk security guard.  Half the time, though, I feel like I’m reciting verbal tongue twisters combined with vocal aerobics.  At the very least, this course has reminded me how hard learning a language really is. It has been really insightful to realize that my newfound fear of speaking Cantonese, for fear of sounding like a buffoon,  closely mirrors the fears of many English students.

10 top things about Hong Kong (pt. 3)

#3. The Markets of Tai Po

In all of my travels throughout Hong Kong, from Central to Mong Kok, from Lan Kwai Fong to Kowloon – by far my favorite place is the old market of Tai Po.  Located in the New Territories just  a few minutes from HKIed, Old Tai Po is like stepping back in time.  Street venders sell food, tea time specials abound, and little shops litter every corner.  Smack dab in the middle of all this is a tiny temple, a river, and little old ladies playing gambling games beneath bridges.  Tai Po also has a Mega Mall, which is full of shops, houses a great Vietnamese restaurant, and has just about everything you need.  Rather than the full bustle of Central Hong Kong, Tai Po is a slower paced gem of the New Territories. 

#2. Cantonese.

Imagine a world in which you can say “cow” and it means cow.  And then, if you change your voice to be higher pitch and say “cow”, it means horse.  Then, change it so you have a deep voice and it means goat.  Sounds not so bad, eh?  Now, imagine that you do that and they mean completely different things, like dog, lamp post, and cow.  Oh, and you can have a rising tone and a falling tone, which also mean other things. Now, you have words that say if you did something in the past, different classifiers for words (you say ‘go’ in front of round things and people, but ‘jek’ in front of pens and long objects.  Oh..and there are about 15 other ones too).  Now, if you say something out of pitch, use the wrong classifier, or say things in an odd order – no one understands you.  If they do, they will immediately answer you so quickly that only the Micro Machine Man has a chance of guessing what they said.  Now, you are getting closer to understanding Cantonese.

#1.  The Green Mini-Bus.

Hands down, one of the best experiences in Hong Kong is a thrilling ride on a mini-bus.  These speed demons cross all over Hong Kong, offering a bargain fare and a quick trip.  But, this deal might cost you years of life.  Seemingly exempt from any and all traffic laws and courtesy, these green machines blaze through crosswalks, zip into tight spots, and jostle you like a British nanny.  You will swear that you have boarded a bus hell bent – particularly if you brave them later at night.  These metal buckets do come with seatbelts, but my advice is to hold on tight and hope.

10 top things about Hong Kong (pt. 2)

#7.  Fashion Statements.

Fashion in Hong Kong is unique.  The requisite fashion expected in a major city is here – a stroll through Central, particularly during the prime time hours, reveals fancy suited men and high class dresses.  Immediately next to this, however, is a style all a person’s own.  They may be sporting a trucker hat, with an oversized shirt, and tights.  Anime haircuts, unique leggings, bright make-up – nothing is off limits in Hong Kong. Once, while at a restaurant, I saw a woman wearing an Egyptian inspired outfit, with large sunglasses and even larger golden jewelry.  Strangely, she didn’t seem out of place at all.  Each person seems freer here to express themselves through clothing than any other place I’ve been.  That said, sometimes it’s just odd.

#6. Sweating.

That’s right, pure hard core sweating.  Imagine a New Mexico heat wave with Arkansas humidity, and you still aren’t even close to Hong Kong.  My first night here, I had no AC (my card wouldn’t work) – and I simply felt like I was suffocating in my sleep.  I can walk down the hallway of the dormitory and have to change shirts upon returning to my room.  Sometimes, the outside air feels like a thin blanket placed over you. With this, though, comes blasting air conditioning that chills bones.  Every establishment you enter seems to have the AC set to maximum.  This results in your body freaking out constantly, as you go from shop to shop, restaurant to food stop, from oppressive heat to mini-freezers.

#5. Canto-pop.

Arkansans have country music, Bulgarians have Chalga, and Hong Kong has Canto-pop.  This has become a particularly humorous thing for me, as I had to sing some Cantonese songs for an Hall orientation game.  A popular gameshow in parts of Asia, non-native Cantonese speakers listen to a song, attempt to sing what they are hearing, and contestants attempt to guess what song they are singing.  Once I got over my self-conciousness, it was quite fun.  I even danced to a Cookies song (it’s hard not to).  So, listen and try to sing!

#4.  The Food.

Like shopping, the food is everywhere.  The high competition also ensures that most of it is really good and really cheap.  But really, the most amazing thing is the variety.  I have eaten Indian, Turkish, Italian, Chinese, and Vietnamese in just a short few weeks.  While I am waiting for those odd foods Cantonese cuisine is famous for (I have been promised chicken feet at some point), the shear plenty of venues here is amazing.  Be prepared to see multiple entries based simply around food…

Up next – the top 3!