Do people have any opinions on this subject?
I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
Ben
Is Cantonese a harsh language?
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Nancy
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?
Wow. It must be great to know two languages fluently. Are you from Hong Kong?
Nancy
Nancy
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Anonymous
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?
And as someone who does speak, Mandarin, Cantonese, and English, I think you're correct. Whenever Cantonese people speak the language, it sounds like they're fighting (especially the old guys). However, I'm still proud of this language. In fact, I think Cantonese is a "language of rage". It fits perfectly with that song from Beyond ("I am anger")
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Eugene Morrow
The sound of Cantonese
Hey guys,
I stunned that fluent Cantonese speakers are saying this. I speak only English and am learning Cantonese, and I totally disagree that Cantonese sounds harsh.
To me, it depends on how you say it. My learning tapes are spoken deliberately slowly, and I find the highs, lows, risings and fallings quite elegant and playful. One of the reasons I am enjoying learning Cantonese is the sound of the language.
I think I know what you are referring to: most fluent speakers speak very FAST. To me, fluent Cantonese speakers sound like they're in an Olympic event: the 100 words final. On that score, Cantonese would have to be a contender because if you try hard you can really compress things into grunts. I think it has something to do with the fast lane life in Hong Kong and the traditional jobs in Business: everyone is always behind and rushing.
So the solution, to me, is for Cantonese speakers to take their watches off, smell the roses and try talking slow enough so that each word is clear. The tones come across more like R2D2 then rather than a fight with light sabers.
Eugene Morrow
I stunned that fluent Cantonese speakers are saying this. I speak only English and am learning Cantonese, and I totally disagree that Cantonese sounds harsh.
To me, it depends on how you say it. My learning tapes are spoken deliberately slowly, and I find the highs, lows, risings and fallings quite elegant and playful. One of the reasons I am enjoying learning Cantonese is the sound of the language.
I think I know what you are referring to: most fluent speakers speak very FAST. To me, fluent Cantonese speakers sound like they're in an Olympic event: the 100 words final. On that score, Cantonese would have to be a contender because if you try hard you can really compress things into grunts. I think it has something to do with the fast lane life in Hong Kong and the traditional jobs in Business: everyone is always behind and rushing.
So the solution, to me, is for Cantonese speakers to take their watches off, smell the roses and try talking slow enough so that each word is clear. The tones come across more like R2D2 then rather than a fight with light sabers.
Eugene Morrow
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Anonymous
Re: The sound of Cantonese
Well, if you look at certain circumstances, answers will differ. Such as, if you say "I love you", to someone using the Japanese "Ai Shiteru" (the "i" in "Shiteru" is silent), it sounds better than the Cantonese "Ngoh Oi Nei"
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Mak Zai 麥仔
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?粵語粗魯嗎?
Hello everybody,
What an interesting subject to discuss. I've pondered over this before and talked about it to several friends of mine. My friends, many of them being Taiwanese feel that Cantonese is a harsh language. They expressed that they Cantonese is actually quite cacophonous in it's nature. They often think that the Cantonese people are engaging in some kind of dispute or argument, while their just having a normal conversation. The Min3nan2/man5nam4 閩南language or what Taiwanese people call tai2yu5/toi4yu5 台語,actually doesn't differ much in terms of loudness. Henceforth, I wonder why Taiwanese people would call it a noisy language.
I personally love Cantonese. Cantonese is a energetic, colorful, vigiorous language, animated
by it's tones. It's a language with spirit. Other languages in Northern China sometimes lack that liveliness that is found in Cantonese.
Another reason that it is so loud is perhaps it's geographical location. Take a moment to consider my following statement. The closer you get to the equator in most continents and countries, the more lively the people and language they speak become. Take for example the Europe. In the North you have the Swedish, Finnish, English, Dutch, German, French etc... As you head south, you'll notice as the climate changes so does the temperament and bearing of the people. The Italians, Spanish and Portuguese all seem to be more enthusiastic in manner. They also speak loud and they seem to be all fired up all the time.
I don't know if what I just shared carries any truth, but it seems to be pretty logical.
Harsh or not, Cantonese is still my most keen language. I hope it lives on as the wonderful language it is in all it's uniqueness.
Keep up the hard work all you who are studying Cantonese.
甚願粵語傳流萬世
施培忠 Michael
: Do people have any opinions on this subject?
: I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: Ben
What an interesting subject to discuss. I've pondered over this before and talked about it to several friends of mine. My friends, many of them being Taiwanese feel that Cantonese is a harsh language. They expressed that they Cantonese is actually quite cacophonous in it's nature. They often think that the Cantonese people are engaging in some kind of dispute or argument, while their just having a normal conversation. The Min3nan2/man5nam4 閩南language or what Taiwanese people call tai2yu5/toi4yu5 台語,actually doesn't differ much in terms of loudness. Henceforth, I wonder why Taiwanese people would call it a noisy language.
I personally love Cantonese. Cantonese is a energetic, colorful, vigiorous language, animated
by it's tones. It's a language with spirit. Other languages in Northern China sometimes lack that liveliness that is found in Cantonese.
Another reason that it is so loud is perhaps it's geographical location. Take a moment to consider my following statement. The closer you get to the equator in most continents and countries, the more lively the people and language they speak become. Take for example the Europe. In the North you have the Swedish, Finnish, English, Dutch, German, French etc... As you head south, you'll notice as the climate changes so does the temperament and bearing of the people. The Italians, Spanish and Portuguese all seem to be more enthusiastic in manner. They also speak loud and they seem to be all fired up all the time.
I don't know if what I just shared carries any truth, but it seems to be pretty logical.
Harsh or not, Cantonese is still my most keen language. I hope it lives on as the wonderful language it is in all it's uniqueness.
Keep up the hard work all you who are studying Cantonese.
甚願粵語傳流萬世
施培忠 Michael
: Do people have any opinions on this subject?
: I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: Ben
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?粵語粗魯嗎?
well. may i say 50/50? frankly, cantonese is not a harsh language, but it could be.
as i recall... when i was a little boy, mom used to remind me to speak clearly but not to "shout" it out. so i think cantonese has its potential to become a harsh language but it all depends on the speaker whether he/she can handle it well.
: Hello everybody,
: What an interesting subject to discuss. I've pondered over this before and talked about it to several friends of mine. My friends, many of them being Taiwanese feel that Cantonese is a harsh language. They expressed that they Cantonese is actually quite cacophonous in it's nature. They often think that the Cantonese people are engaging in some kind of dispute or argument, while their just having a normal conversation. The Min3nan2/man5nam4 閩南language or what Taiwanese people call tai2yu5/toi4yu5 台語,actually doesn't differ much in terms of loudness. Henceforth, I wonder why Taiwanese people would call it a noisy language.
: I personally love Cantonese. Cantonese is a energetic, colorful, vigiorous language, animated
: by it's tones. It's a language with spirit. Other languages in Northern China sometimes lack that liveliness that is found in Cantonese.
: Another reason that it is so loud is perhaps it's geographical location. Take a moment to consider my following statement. The closer you get to the equator in most continents and countries, the more lively the people and language they speak become. Take for example the Europe. In the North you have the Swedish, Finnish, English, Dutch, German, French etc... As you head south, you'll notice as the climate changes so does the temperament and bearing of the people. The Italians, Spanish and Portuguese all seem to be more enthusiastic in manner. They also speak loud and they seem to be all fired up all the time.
: I don't know if what I just shared carries any truth, but it seems to be pretty logical.
: Harsh or not, Cantonese is still my most keen language. I hope it lives on as the wonderful language it is in all it's uniqueness.
: Keep up the hard work all you who are studying Cantonese.
: 甚願粵語傳流萬世
:
: 施培忠 Michael
: : Do people have any opinions on this subject?
: : I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: : As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: : Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: : Ben
as i recall... when i was a little boy, mom used to remind me to speak clearly but not to "shout" it out. so i think cantonese has its potential to become a harsh language but it all depends on the speaker whether he/she can handle it well.
: Hello everybody,
: What an interesting subject to discuss. I've pondered over this before and talked about it to several friends of mine. My friends, many of them being Taiwanese feel that Cantonese is a harsh language. They expressed that they Cantonese is actually quite cacophonous in it's nature. They often think that the Cantonese people are engaging in some kind of dispute or argument, while their just having a normal conversation. The Min3nan2/man5nam4 閩南language or what Taiwanese people call tai2yu5/toi4yu5 台語,actually doesn't differ much in terms of loudness. Henceforth, I wonder why Taiwanese people would call it a noisy language.
: I personally love Cantonese. Cantonese is a energetic, colorful, vigiorous language, animated
: by it's tones. It's a language with spirit. Other languages in Northern China sometimes lack that liveliness that is found in Cantonese.
: Another reason that it is so loud is perhaps it's geographical location. Take a moment to consider my following statement. The closer you get to the equator in most continents and countries, the more lively the people and language they speak become. Take for example the Europe. In the North you have the Swedish, Finnish, English, Dutch, German, French etc... As you head south, you'll notice as the climate changes so does the temperament and bearing of the people. The Italians, Spanish and Portuguese all seem to be more enthusiastic in manner. They also speak loud and they seem to be all fired up all the time.
: I don't know if what I just shared carries any truth, but it seems to be pretty logical.
: Harsh or not, Cantonese is still my most keen language. I hope it lives on as the wonderful language it is in all it's uniqueness.
: Keep up the hard work all you who are studying Cantonese.
: 甚願粵語傳流萬世
:
: 施培忠 Michael
: : Do people have any opinions on this subject?
: : I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: : As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: : Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: : Ben
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Anonymous
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?粵語粗魯嗎?
Hey, you know what?
I think you're abosolutely right about the "equator" issue. The Vietnamese are also loud people (traditionally). I think the sun "gets to us", and we all begin to 發雞瘟 or something, which makes us talk so loud.
Who knows?
*Note: the "發雞瘟" thing, is only a joke, don't take it seriously*
I think you're abosolutely right about the "equator" issue. The Vietnamese are also loud people (traditionally). I think the sun "gets to us", and we all begin to 發雞瘟 or something, which makes us talk so loud.
Who knows?
*Note: the "發雞瘟" thing, is only a joke, don't take it seriously*
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eatsee
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?
: Do people have any opinions on this subject?
: I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: Ben
:I think Cantonese is not as refined as Mandarin, in a sense, the daily speaking cantonese words, but if you dig deep into the verses of operas, you'll find it more than elegant. trust me. cantonese is harsh because the people who employ it has to tackle with harsh people. so, it can be gentle and elegant, as well. depends on whom do you learn and what do you learn and how well you learnt.
: I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: Ben
:I think Cantonese is not as refined as Mandarin, in a sense, the daily speaking cantonese words, but if you dig deep into the verses of operas, you'll find it more than elegant. trust me. cantonese is harsh because the people who employ it has to tackle with harsh people. so, it can be gentle and elegant, as well. depends on whom do you learn and what do you learn and how well you learnt.
-
eatsee
Re: Is Cantonese a harsh language?
: Do people have any opinions on this subject?
: I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: Ben
:I think Cantonese is not as refined as Mandarin, in a sense, the daily speaking cantonese words, but if you dig deep into the verses of operas, you'll find it more than elegant. trust me. cantonese is harsh because the people who employ it has to tackle with harsh people. so, it can be gentle and elegant, as well. depends on whom do you learn and what do you learn and how well you learnt.
: I think Cantonese is one of the harshest languages around, unlike, say, Mandarin or other East Asian languages. Cantonese is simply very cacophonous and displeasing to the ear.
: As someone who speaks both Cantonese & English fluently (but not Mandarin), I find these two languages are not entirely compatible. I've heard of many anecdoctal reports of how people from HK who speak Cantonese who cannot adjust to NOrth American culture because of this linguistic barrier, as opposed to someone who speaks Mandarin who nonethless could acculturate relatively easier in spite of a greater cultural gulf between mainland China and NOrth America.
: Thoughts? Is linguistics/language playing a role here?
: Ben
:I think Cantonese is not as refined as Mandarin, in a sense, the daily speaking cantonese words, but if you dig deep into the verses of operas, you'll find it more than elegant. trust me. cantonese is harsh because the people who employ it has to tackle with harsh people. so, it can be gentle and elegant, as well. depends on whom do you learn and what do you learn and how well you learnt.