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Shanghainese, sometimes referred to as the Shanghai dialect, is a dialect of Wu Chinese spoken in the city of Shanghai. Shanghainese and other Wu dialects are not mutually intelligible (see Mutually intelligible languages) with other Chinese dialects such as Standard Mandarin. Shanghainese is the representative dialect of Northern Wu; it contains vocabulary and expressions from the entire Northern Wu area (southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang). With nearly 14 million speakers, Shanghainese is also the largest single coherent form of Wu Chinese. In Western sources, the term "Shanghainese" often refers to all Wu dialects and not specifically the particular Wu dialect spoken in Shanghai. The total number of Wu speakers is over 80 million, the second largest Chinese language after Mandarin.
Shanghainese is rich in consonants and pure vowels . Like other northern Wu dialects, the Shanghai dialect has voiced initials . Neither Mandarin nor Cantonese has voiced initials. The Shanghainese tonal system is significantly different from other Chinese languages. Shanghainese is a language with two live tonal contrasts (high and low), while Mandarin and Cantonese are contour tonal languages.
Shanghainese is not encouraged to be spoken in schools and written in newspapers, and the media are strongly discouraged from broadcasting in contemporary Shanghainese. There is a lot of uncertainty between what gets aired in Shanghainese and what becomes censored (due to government fears of regionalism), thus most producers do not take this risk and only produce in Mandarin. Several television advertisements in Shanghainese have been removed shortly after airing. But there have been some TV series in Shanghainese that were approved since the mid-1990s. Back in 1995, a TV play series called "Nie Zhai" (the Evil Debt) was in Shanghainese; while it was broadcasted in other places in China, mainly in adjacent Wu-speaking provinces, subtitles in Mandarin were added rather than make a Mandarin version of the TV series. Another TV comedy programme "Lao Niang Jiu" (Old Uncle) has been broadcasting for seven years now, and is still quite popular among Shanghainese residents. In 2004, a Tom and Jerry cartoon program dubbed with Shanghainese was blocked from broadcasting. Older and more rural forms of Shanghainese are still heard on the radio (catering to farming communities in the suburbs). But the Shanghainese are strongly encouraged by the government to speak Mandarin and celebrities are put on billboards with slogans like "Be a modern Shanghai person, speak Mandarin."
In August 2005, there were media coverages reporting that Shanghainese will be taught in high school. This introduced great controversy. Proponents argue that this will make the students know their hometown better and help preserve local culture. Opponents argue that this will encourage discrimination based on people's origin.
In September 2005, the Shanghai municipal government also launched a campaign to encourage Mandarin speaking in Shanghai. Among other requirements, all service-industry workers in Shanghai will be required to greet customers in Mandarin only, and pass Mandarin-fluency test by 2010. Those with bad or heavily-accented Mandarin must enroll in remedial Mandarin classes.
Common Words and Phrases in Shanghainese
Note: Chinese characters for Shanghainese are not standardized and are provided for reference only. IPA transcription is for the Middle period of modern Shanghainese (中派上海话), pronunciation of those between 20 and 60 years old.
| Translation | Latin method | Northern Wu | Lumazi | IPA | Chinese character |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shanghainese (language): | Zanhêrerau | Zanheghaewo | Zanheireiwo | * | 上海言话(上海言話) |
| Shanghainese (people): | Zanhegnin | Zanhegnin | Zanheinin | * | 上海人 |
| I | ngû | ghoo, gnou | wo, ngu | [ | 我 |
| we or I | aqlaq | álá | aelae | * | 阿拉（我拉） |
| he/she | yi | ji | yi | * | 伊（其） |
| they | yila | jila | yila | * | 伊拉 |
| you (sing.) | non | non | non | * | 侬(儂) |
| you (plural) | na | na | na | * | 乃 |
| hello: | non hô | non ho | non ho | * | 侬好(儂好) |
| good-bye: | tzêwê | tsewe | tzeiwei | * | 再会(再會) |
| thank you: | jaja non | ziaja non | zhaya non | *or* | 谢谢侬(謝謝儂) |
| sorry: | têveqchî | tevéchi | teivechi | * | 对勿起(對勿起) |
| but, however: | dêzŷ, dêzŷ ni | daezu, daezu ni | deizi, deizi ni | [ | 但是, 但是呢 |
| please: | tsîn | tshin | chin | * | 请(請) |
| that one: | etzaq, itzaq | etsá, itsá | eitzae, itzae | [ | 哎只, 伊只 |
| there: | etaq, itaq | etá, itá | eitae, itae | [ | 哎垯, 伊垯 |
| over there: | emîtaq, imîtaq | emitá, imitá | eimitae, imitae | [ | 哎面垯, 伊面垯 |
| here: | geqtaq | gétá | getae | * | 箇垯（搿垯） |
| to have | yoeteq | jeuté | youte | * | 有得 |
| to exist, here, present: | laqhê | láhe | laehei | * | 辣嗨 |
| now, current: | yî(d)zê | jieze | yizei | * | 现在(現在) |
| what time is it?: | yîzê cîtî tzon? | jieze citie tson? | yizei citi tzon? | * | 现在几点钟？(現在幾點钟?) |
| where: | ralîtaq, sâdîfan | ghalitá, sadifan | ralitae, sadifan | [ | 何里耷(何裏耷), 啥地方 |
| what: | sâreq | saré | sare | * | 啥个,做啥 |
| who: | sâgnin | sagnin | sanin | * | 啥人 |
| why: | wêsâ | wesa | weisa | * | 为啥(為啥) |
| when: | sâzenkuan | sazencuan | sazenkuan | * | 啥辰光 |
| how: | nânen, nânenka | nanen, nanenca | nanen, nanenka | * | 哪能, 哪能介 |
| how much?: | cîdî? | cidie? | cidi? | * | 几钿?几块洋钿?(幾鈿?幾坱銀頭?) |
| yes: | e | eh | ei | * | 哎 |
| no: | m, veqzŷ, m'meq, vio | m, vézu, mmé, vio | m, vezi, mme, vio | *," target="_blank" >[ | 呒、弗是、呒没 |
| telephone number: | dîraû rôdoê | diewo ghodeu | diwo rodou | * | 电话号头(電話號頭) |
| home: | oq lîxiân | ólihian | oelishan | * | 屋里向(屋裏向) |
| Come to our house and play. | to aqlaq oqlîxiân le beqsiân. | to álá ólihian le bésian. | to aelae oelishan lei beshan. | * | 到阿拉屋里向来孛相（白相）！(到阿拉屋裏向來孛相!) |
| Where's the restroom?: | dâsoêke leqlaq ralîtaq? | daseucae lélá ghalitá? | dasoukei lelae ralitae? | * | 汏手间勒勒阿里耷? (汏手間勒勒阿裏耷?) |
| Have you eaten dinner?: | yâvê chîkûleq va? | javae chícoulé va? | yavei chiekule va? | * | 夜饭吃过了伐? (夜飯吃過了伐?) |
| I don't know: | ngû veqxioteq. | ghoo véhioté. | wo veshote. | * | 我弗晓得. (我弗曉得.) |
| Do you speak English?: | non Inven kânteqle va? | non Inven cantéle va? | non Inven kantelei va? | * | 侬英文讲得来伐（“伐”带口字旁）? |
| I love you: | ngû ê non! | ghoo e non! | wo ei non. | * | 我爱侬！(我愛儂!) |
| I adore you: | ngû êmu non. | ghoo emu non. | wo eimu non. | * | 我爱慕侬. (我愛慕儂!) |
| I like you a lot: | ngû lô hueûxî non req. | ghoo lo huoehi non ghé! | wo lo hueushi non re. | * | 我老欢喜侬个！(我老歡喜儂個) |
| news | sinven | sinven | shinven | * | 新闻 (新聞) |
| dead | sîtheqleq | sithélé | shithele | * | 死脱了 |
| alive | weqlaqhê | wéláhe | welaehei | * | 活辣海（活着） |
| very | ciokue (ziachî) | 交関（邪气） | |||
| very bad | ciokue wâ (ziachî wâ) | 交関壊（邪气壊） | |||
| inside, within | lîxiân | lihian | lishan | 裏向 | |
| outside | ngâdoe | 外頭 |
Initials
| Labials | Dentals | Sibilants | Palatals | Velars | Glottals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unvoiced unaspirated stops | ||||||
| Aspirated stops | ||||||
| Slack voiced stops | ||||||
| Nasals | ||||||
| Unvoiced fricatives | ||||||
| Slack voiced fricatives | ||||||
| Liquids | () | l | () |
Shanghai dialect has a set of voiced initials and exhibits unvoiced unaspirated and aspirated stops. Moreover, there are unvoiced and voiced sets of fricatives. Palatalized initials also feature in Shanghai dialect. The consonant is also particular in that there is a slight flapping of the tongue during speech, somewhat similar to the Japanese r (although lateral and not post-alveolar). The sound may be made by lightly placing the tongue on the back of the upper set of teeth. However this flapping is not present when each character is individually pronounced.
Rimes
| Vowel | Diphthong | Nasal Ending | Nasalised Rime | Glottal Stop |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ø | ||||
| E | ||||
In certain variants, the is pronounced unrounded (close back unrounded, ).
Tones
| Yin (陰) | Yin Ping (陰平) | Yin Shang Qu (陰上去) | Yin Ru (陰入) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 52 | 335 | 5 | |
| Yang (陽) | Yang Shu (Yang Qu) (陽舒(陽去)) | Yang Ru (陽入) | |
| 113 | 23 | ||
Advanced tone sandhi and argument for pitch accent classification:
In polysyllabic words or set phrases, all syllables after the first lose their original tones and are pronounced based on the table below as "neutral" syllables. Even the first syllable that determines subsequent pitches is altered in a polysyllabic word. The patterns vary depending on the number of syllables in the word or set short phrase.| 1st syllable original tone | 2 syllables | 3 syllables | 4 syllables | 5 syllables |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 52 | 55 - 21 | 55 - 22 - 21 | 55 - 22 - 22 - 21 | 55 - 22 - 22 - 22 - 21 |
| H - L | H - L - L | H - L - L - L | H - L - L - L - L | |
| 335 | 33 - 44 | 33 - 55 - 21 | 33 - 55 - 22 - 21 | 33 - 55 - 22 - 22 - 21 |
| L - H | L - H - L | L - H - L - L | L - H - L - L - L | |
| 113 | 22 - 44 | 22 - 55 - 21 | 22 - 55 - 22 - 21 | 22 - 55 - 22 - 22 - 21 |
| L - H | L - H - L | L - H - L - L | L - H - L - L - L | |
| 5 | 3 - 44 | 3 - 55 - 21 | 3 - 55 - 22 - 21 | 3 - 55 - 22 - 22 - 21 |
| L - H | L - H - L | L - H - L - L | L - H - L - L - L | |
| 23 | 2 - 34 | 2 - 22 - 34 | 2 - 22 - 22 - 34 | 2 - 22 - 22 - 22 - 34 |
| L - H | L - L - H | L - L - L - H | L - L - L - L - H | |
Notice that these patterns are quite similar to Japanese pitch accent patterns. Tone sandhi of polysyllabic compounds in the Shanghai dialect has attracted the interest of many scholars, who have previously given only careful consideration to the tone of the monosyllable while trying to describe the rules of tone sandhi for polysyllabic compounds. It has been argued that the number of tones of the Shanghai dialect, generally held to be five under previous analyses, can be reduced to only two underlying tone patterns, or tonemes, by recognizing the existence of the phoneme "voiced h" (Xiaowen Shen, University of Tokyo).
References
- Lance Eccles, Shanghai dialect: an introduction to speaking the contemporary language. Dunwoody Press, 1993. ISBN 1-881265-11-0. 230pp + cassette. (An introductory course in 29 units).
See also
External links
- Project to Introduce and Promote Shanghainese: Background, audio, lessons, phonology, and forums. In English.
- Shanghai Dialect: Resources on Shanghai dialect including a Web site (in Japanese) that gives common phrases with sound files
- Conversational Shanghai Chinese: An online textbook of Shanghainese, with audio.
- Shanghainese-Mandarin Soundboard: A soundboard (requires Flash) of common Mandarin Chinese phrases with Shanghainese equivalents.
Shanghai culture | Chinese language | City colloquials
Shanghaiische Sprache | Shanghaien | 上海語 | Шанхайский диалект | 上海话
"Shanghainese"