Cantonese

March 12, 2020

The official languages of Hong Kong before and after 1997 included Cantonese (which is different from Cantonese in Guangzhou). Some people say that Cantonese are domineering. Hong Kong will be discriminated against. But in fact, there are many kinds of Cantonese in Guangdong Province, such as Taishan, Hakka, Shunde, Chaozhou, Helao, etc. In terms of Hakka dialect alone, the Hakka dialects of Hakka people in different parts of Guangdong Province are different. What is interesting is that some immigrants from outside Guangdong Province may not be able to speak Hong Kong-style Cantonese even if they have settled in Hong Kong since childhood and have lived there for more than ten or twenty years. The strangest thing is that some non-Cantonese native speakers from Guangdong Province may not speak the so-called standard after living in Hong Kong for a long time. As soon as Hong Kong people hear Cantonese with a local accent, they will say that the person is either a freelancer or a new immigrant, but in fact he is a Hong Konger who is fake. Even more interesting, if he said he came to Hong Kong from overseas, you would think his half-salted Cantonese is very cute, a ghost girl / ghost boy.

When it comes to Hong Kong people speaking Mandarin, it is only when they speak it badly that they represent the identity of Hong Kong people. As long as you listen to the broadcast of a large department store and the special broadcast of public transportation, their Mandarin is with a heavy Cantonese voice. If you really want to communicate in Mandarin, the party who does not understand Cantonese sometimes finds it difficult. Will the arrogance of Hong Kong people change in the future because reflection is a stumbling block to the pursuit of progress?