| Will Chinese become a "lingua franca"? | |
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| Sep 19, 2007 02:34 |   |
 | A report from Wall Street Jounal states that there has been a craze for learning Chinese all around the world, in particular in Southeast Asia. Many Chinese college graduates are choosing to go abroad to teach Chinese. Teaching Chinese abroad has become a good opportunity for the Chinese youngsters to accumulate overseas experience. I wonder why there is a craze for learning Chinese, since as far as I know, Chinese is one of the most difficult language to learn.( Another post by Miss Heidi mentioned its complexity) What are the real motivators for you foreign friends to learn Chinese? Do you think Chinese will become a "lingua franca"? Will Chinese become as popular as English? |
| Sep 19, 2007 20:56 | #1 |
| No. 1 for business. No. 2 for a better job opportunity. No. 3 cos Chinese is popular now. ... |
| Sep 20, 2007 02:45 | #2 |
| It is already one of two Lingua franca. It just happens to be spoken as a first language at least, by more people than English as a first language. And Chinese speakers are scattered around the globe. But English has become the language of business and IT these days but that should not stop us from learning a second language. It is just much easier to relate to people if you can speak the same language. It is a challenge for most of us who have begun and I would like to see it through. I have tried to learn two other much easier languages but failed to persue them to fluency. I wonder how long it will take me with Chinese and will I succeed at all. |
| Sep 20, 2007 04:54 | #3 |
| Jabarootoo, Come on! You will succeed. Remember, where there is a will, there is a way. Chinese is not that difficult to learn, since you have immersed in an environment of speaking-Chinese. Maybe. it is better for you to talk with the Chinese friends around you in Chinese. Soon, you will have a good command of Chinese language. Cheers! |
| Sep 20, 2007 06:54 | #4 |
| Certainly, the Chinese language tends to spread internationally. It is becoming a choice in high school foreign language curriculum in some western and eastern countries, and there are more and more adult learners of the Chinese language for business and travel. It remains however a tendency to respond to the increasing weight of international commerce and trade with that part of the world. Beyond this need, I doubt if the Chinese language should become a lingua franca in places beyond Taiwan, Hongkong, Macau and Singapore where there are strong presence of ethnical Chinese native speakers. Furthermore it has little role to play in diplomacy and IT. Of course there are other individual motivations… the language fascinates many to challenge and master it… for apparent personal reasons… |
| Sep 24, 2007 01:55 | #5 |
| Personally I'm learning Chinese because I live and work in China currently and want to learn more about the language and culture. If I lived in any other country, I would think it only right to learn the language and make some attempt to interact with local people. English is, I guess, the world's "lingua franca" and I doubt this is going to change - and if it did, I would doubt that Chinese would take it's place - despite the great number of Chinese speakers. The complexity of the written language is a big obstacle. Why is Chinese popular now ? I agree with May. China is one of the fastest developing countries in the world, opportunities here are enormous, in every field and sector.... interestingly, the craze for learning English in China is increasing, for exactly the same reason. |
| Sep 24, 2007 22:52 | #6 |
| Hi FAERIEQUEENE, "Certainly, the Chinese language tends to spread internationally. It is becoming a choice in high school foreign language curriculum in some western and eastern countries". Well, as far as I know, in some western countries, for instance, Canada, French is more popular with Canadian students in foreign language curriculum. So, currently, Chinese still has little influence in the western countries. I doubt if it can become a "lingua franca" since "the complexity of the written language is a big obstacle." |
| Sep 25, 2007 00:31 | #7 |
| GUEST32243 | No! It's really hard for you! |
| Sep 25, 2007 21:36 | #8 |
| "Personally I'm learning Chinese because I live and work in China currently and want to learn more about the language and culture." Is this the most prevalent reasons for you westerners to learn Chinese? You learn Chinese just because you lived in the country and wanted to use the language tool? |
| Oct 11, 2007 09:25 | #9 |
| already is |
| Oct 12, 2007 09:12 | #10 |
| Nothing is going to replace English as the major international language (excepting extreme situations where a Chinese government dominates the world and demands it) as English is already entrenched and spoken by businessmen, sportsmen and travellers. Given the difficulty of learning Chinese it just won't surpass English. That so many people are learning Chinese as a second language reflects the view that China is becoming the most powerful nation in the world. Sure we might have more people speaking English across the world but it will not be the language of choice when there is a mixed international group. Of course the situation would be a little different if China chooses to give up its character writing (like Korea and Vietnam have done) and switch to pinyin....but that won't happen. |
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