#the fusion of unlike but translationally equatable terms to create something new
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xuexishijian Ā· 2 years ago
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So the other day I posted some linguistics terms vocab, basic terms that I was curious about. And I looked up ā€œdialectā€ and my dictionary gave me ę–¹č؀ fāngyĆ”n, which I didnā€™t really question. Like fine, sure, ā€œlocal speech,ā€ that makes sense as what we call ā€œdialectā€ in English.
But I just watched this lecture on YouTube called ā€œHow Fangyan became Dialectsā€ by historian Dr. Gina Anne Tam and turns out thatā€™s a very loaded assumption! Because basically thereā€™s a long history of the sort of mismatch(?) between western terms for describing linguistic varieties (languages, dialects, vernaculars, etc etc) and those used in China. Iā€™d definitely heard other Chinese languages such as Cantonese or Hokkien described as dialects, and this mistranslation or misrepresentation of ę–¹č؀ is a major part of this problem.
The idea of language vs. dialect is a complex one, and these terms in Chinese languages donā€™t map 1-to-1 onto existing European-language ones. Linguists in the 19th and 20th century struggled with this and often made comparisons to what they knew from Europe, imposing distinctions and hierarchies that didnā€™t necessarily exist prior. Language and nationalism in Europe during these years is also super interesting and something Iā€™ve read some about, and it makes sense then that westerners would be confused by a country with many forms of speaking when Europe was (and still is?) drawing up borders along linguistic+national+ethnic lines.
The development of nationalism in China through the 20th century led to further changes in the idea of a national language, especially with the promotion of first 國čŖž in the Republican era and ꙮ通čƝ under the Communist government.
Itā€™s interesting that what used to be a term for a regionā€™s language can now be used in a hierarchical way to subordinate certain linguistic varieties to others. Dr. Tam mentioned that there was an article that generated controversy years ago that said that since Cantonese was a ę–¹č؀ that is wasnā€™t fit to be taught and couldnā€™t be considered anyoneā€™s ęƍčÆ­ mĒ”yĒ” (mother language), that instead all Chinese people must learn and use ꙮ通čƝ, the national standard. This idea of course coming from the implications that ę–¹č؀ now has, that itā€™s ā€œmerelyā€ a dialect, that dialects arenā€™t ā€œfullā€ languages, that theyā€™re inferior or incomplete or whatever.
Dr. Tam had a nicer way of phrasing this, but terminology is so important because these definitionsā€”which may seem inconsequential, like weā€™re squabbling over minor issues that mean littleā€”influence how we perceive and think, which in turn influences how we interact with the world. If a ę–¹č؀ is just a dialect, and dialects are lower than languages, and Cantonese is a ę–¹č؀, that means Cantonese is lesser. Thatā€™s a ā€œlogicalā€ conclusion one can make, just a syllogism of X is Y, Y is Z, therefore X is Z (Cantonese is a ę–¹č؀, ę–¹č؀ is lesser, Cantonese is lesser). But that ā€œlogicalā€ conclusion starts from a very very flawed premise, this definition which presupposes a hierarchy that doesnā€™t really exist linguistically (but then does exist socially and is justified by these ā€œscientificā€ or ā€œlogicalā€ reasons).
All that to say, this was a super interesting lecture (about her book that I might have to read!) and if you have time I would totally recommend giving it a watch. These terms are interesting and complex and nuanced, and knowing more about the history is really enlightening. Iā€™ve been getting into language and identity lately, reading a lot about nationalism and race and the idea of ā€œnative speakers.ā€ It feels like, while in other areas we might have made social progress, that language is one area that many people are super unaware of and take for granted their own biases without understanding these power structures and their histories.
Anyways Iā€™d be curious to hear what anyone else has to say on the topic! And definitely if you watch her lecture let me know what you think!
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