Zhōngguó/中国

Why learn Chinese?

Zhōngguó/中国

• China is the most populous nation in the world, with 1.28 billion people.

• One fifth of the planet speaks Chinese. Mandarin Chinese is the mother tongue of over 873 million people, making it the most widely spoken first language in the world.

• China is one of largest trading partners of the United States.

• Many US companies do business in China and have long-term investments there.

• One of the most important languages in the business world.

• Their economy is growing significantly, it is the second largest in the world.

• China is one of the world’s oldest and richest continuous cultures, over 5000 years old.

Why learn Chinese?

Zhōngguó/中国

 - Many young Americans not of Chinese descent have become interested in learning the language.

- Over 2 million Americans speak some variety of Chinese, with the Mandarin variety becoming increasingly more common.

- The Chinese American community is the largest ethnic group of Asian

Americans. They constitute 1.2% of the United States as a whole.

- In 2006, the Chinese American population numbered approximately 3.6 million.

Chinese in the USA

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese contributions to the USA include:

• building the western half of the Transcontinental railroad and levees in the Sacramento River Delta

• the popularization of Chinese American food

• technological innovation and entrepreneurship

• the introduction of Chinese and East Asian culture to America, such as Buddhism, Taoism, and Kung fu

• Confucian respect for elders and family goodness

• education and the civil service were the most important path for upward social mobility in China

Zhōngguó/中国

Zhōngguó/中国Where is Chinese spoken?

MandarinChinese/1120millionBrunei PhilippinesCambodia SingaporeChina SouthAfricaIndonesia TaiwanMalaysia ThailandMongolia

WuChinese/77.2millionChina

CantoneseChinese/66millionBrunei PanamaChina PhilippinesCostaRica SingaporeIndonesia ThailandMalaysia Vietnam

MinNanChinese/49millionBrunei PhilippinesChina SingaporeIndonesia TaiwanMalaysia Thailand

JinyuChinese/45millionChina

XiangChinese/36millionChina

HakkaChinese/34millionBrunei SingaporeChina SurinameIndonesia TaiwanMalaysia ThailandPanama

GanChinese/20.6millionChina

Zhōngguó/中国Greetings Chinese

Hello

GoodbyeWhat’syourname?Iam…/Mynameis…Howareyou?

Well

Okay

Níhâo!

Zàijìan

Wô jiào...

wǒ hěnhǎo.

nǐhǎo ma?

Nî jiào shénm?

hǎode.

Zhōngguó/中国

Numbers Chinese Numbers Chinese

1

234

yī

èrsänsì

5 wû

6

78910

liù

qī

bājiûshí

Zhōngguó/中国

Colors Chinese Colors Chinese

Red

Orange

Yellow

Green

Blue

Purple

Pink

Brown

Black

White

Gray

hóng sè fěnhóngsèchéng sè

jú sè

huáng sè

lǜ sè

lán sè

zǐ sè

kāfēi sè

hēi sè

bái sè

huī sè

Let’s practice!

Zhōngguó/中国Who Was Confucius

Confucius, Kongzi, or Master Kung

lived from 551-479 B.C. He was

from the ancient Chinese state of

Lu. Today he's known in the West

as the speaker of fortune-cookie-

type platitudes in old black and

white movies. Confucius was a

social philosopher whose values

became dominant in China after

he died.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

A closed mind is like a closed book,

just a block of wood.

To know the road ahead, ask those who are coming back.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

There are always ears on the other side of the wall.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

Dream different

dreams while on

the same bed.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

A fall into the ditch makes you wiser.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

Make happy those who are near and

those who are far will come.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

A single conversation with a wise man is

better than ten years of study.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Proverbs

Clear conscience never fears midnight knocking.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Calendar

A complete cycle of the Chinese calendar takes 60 years; it is the oldest known calendar . (2600 B.C.)

Divided into 12 lunar months of 29 or 30 days.

So the seasons don't get out of wack, an extra month is inserted every 3 years or so according to strict rules.

Celebrate two New Years —one on January 1st and one on the Chinese New Year in February.

The years themselves are organized into 60-year calendar cycles: five times the 12-year Chinese zodiac cycle. The current 60-year cycle extends from 1996 to 2055. The last one lasted from 1936 to 1995.

In China and some other Asian countries age is determined from the moment of conception not from the moment of birth.

The 3rd and 17th days of the month are considered unlucky. Many Chinese don't work on these days. Double Ten Day, October 10th, is really, really unlucky.

Often a person isn’t recognized as being a year older until the Chinese New Year. Thus, someone who is 25 in the United States is usually 26 in China or Korea. Birthdays are often less important in Asia than they are in the West. The hour and year of birth are have more significance than the date of birth.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Zodiac

The Chinese zodiac is based on a centuries-old system based on natural elements, marked by fixed colors and assigned a dozen animals as they correspond to the hour, date, month and year of birth. To make leap year adjustments, the colors of white, black, green, red and brown also are assigned.

The Chinese Zodiac is based on years rather months. Each year in a 12-year cycle is named after a different animal, with distinct characteristics associated with that animal. Many Chinese believe that the year of a person's birth is the primary factor in determining a person's personality traits, mental and physical attributes and success in love and life.

Zhōngguó/中国Chinese Zodiac

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… Chinese is one of the most difficult languages for native English speakers to learn?

“It’s Greek to me” is an expression in English to claim that something is very difficult to understand. Actually many languages have similar expressions. A lot of languages directly or indirectly refer Chinese as a hard language to understand; in Chinese, the similar idiom is “it sounds like God’s language”. So it seems like Chinese is one of the most difficult languages on the planet.

He goes on to say that Chinese teachers estimate that it takes 7-8 years for a native Mandarin speaker to learn to read and write 3000 characters, whereas French and Spanish teachers estimate that students in those countries reach a comparable level in half that time.

What makes Chinese difficult?

1) It is written with characters.

2) It has a tonal system.

3) It’s difficult to use the dictionary.

4) It’s grammar is not like you think grammar should be.5) It’s vocabulary is broad and complex.

6) It has many dialects.

Chinese is said to be THE most difficultlanguage to learn!Even native Chinese speakers have a hard time with the language!

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

…China is often considered the longest continuous civilization, with some historians marking 6000 B.C. as the dawn of Chinese civilization.

The oldest form of the Chinese written language was found in the Oracle Bone inscriptions carved on tortoise shells and mammal bones during the Shang dynasty

It also has the world’s longest continuously used written language.

Evolution of character "Horse" over thousands of years.

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… China is a communist country?

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… China’s Great Wall is one of a handful of man made objects seen from outer space?

Just like a gigantic dragon, the Great Wall winds up and down across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus stretching approximately 4,163 miles from east to west of China.With a history of more than 2000 years, some of the section of the great wall or China are now in ruins or even entirely disappeared

The construction of the Great Wall began between the 7th and 8th centuries B.C. when the warring states built defensive walls to ward off enemies from the north.

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… Ice Cream was invented in China around 2000 B.C. when they packed a soft milk in rice mixture in the snow?

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… China is sometimes one day ahead of the USA?

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… There are 58 different ethnic groups in China?

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… Red is considered a lucky color in China?

In traditional Chinese art and culture, black, red, blue-green, white and yellow are viewed as standard colors. These colors correspond to the five elements of water, fire, wood, metal and earth, taught in traditional Chinese physics. 

Red, corresponding with fire, symbolizes good fortune and joy. Red is found everywhere during Chinese New Year and other holidays and family gatherings. A red envelope is a monetary gift which is given in Chinese society during holiday or special occasions. The red color of the packet symbolizes good luck. Red is strictly forbidden at funerals as it is a traditionally symbolic color of happiness. In modern China, red remains a very popular color and is affiliated with and used by the Communist government.

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… Families are only allowed to have one child each. It is the most populated country in the world?

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… The Chinese invented paper, the compass, gunpowder, and printing?

AD105isoftencitedastheyearinwhichpapermakingwasinvented.Inthatyear,historicalrecordsshowthattheinventionofpaperwasreportedtotheChineseEmperorbyTs'aiLun,anofficialoftheImperialCourt.Recentarchaeologicalinvestigations,however,placetheactualinventionofpapermakingsome200yearseariler.AncientpaperpiecesfromtheXuanquanzhiruinsofDunhuanginChina'snorthwestGansuprovinceapparentlyweremadeduringtheperiodofEmperorWuwhoreignedbetween140BCand86BC.

TheearliestreferencetoaspecificmagneticdirectionfinderdeviceisrecordedinaSongDynastybookdatedto1040-44.

Knownas"BlazingMedicine"inChinese,thegunpowderismadebythreekindsofancientfolkmedicine:saltpeter,sulfurandcharcoal.SincetheQinDynasty,peoplehavebeenusingsaltpeterandsulfurtomakedrugs.Thesubstancesonceexplodedaccidentally,thedrugmakerswereastonishinglyinspired,sotheytestedmanytimesinordertocarryouteffectiveexplosions.AnoutstandingtechnicianintheThreeKingdomPeriod,MaJun,hasmadeakindafirecrackertoybypackingthegunpowderinsideapieceofpaper.Itwasthefirsttrueapplicationofthegunpowder.

DuringtheSuiDynasty,printingisaccomplishedbymeanofaknifecutlaterallyreversedcharactersonwoodenboards,paintinkonit,andthenprintthecharactersonthepaper.

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… Toilet paper was invented in China in the late 1300s. It was for emperors only?

Becausetoiletpaperwasmadefromricestraw,itwasveryrough.Today,manyChinesestillcalltoiletpaper“strawpaper,”eventhoughitisnolongermadefromstraw.DuringtheMingdynasty(1368-1644),theemperorandhisfamilyhadtoiletpaperthatwassoftandsometimesevenperfumed.

Zhōngguó/中国Did you know that…

… Cricket fighting is a popular amusement in China. Many Chinese children keep crickets as pets?

Snowiest Ride (3)

Sports Day (4)

Places Where we All Live (1)

Practical Applications

Where It Is SpokenThe language Chinese is spoken in Australia, Brunei, China, Christmas Island, Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, New Zealand, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Singapore, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, and Vietnam. The World Fact Book 2011

- Over 1 billion people speak Chinese in the world- One of the most important languages in the business world- Their economy is growing significantly allowing for more job opportunities- Better experiences when traveling

China

Greetings

Colorslǜ sè – greenzǐ sè – purple lán sè – bluehēi sè – blackkāfēi sè – brownhuī sè – graybái sè – whitehuáng sè – yellow chéng sè or jú sè – orangehóng sè – redfěn hóng sè – pink

http://www.languagebite.com/freecourse.php

China

Presence in the USA

- Many young Americans not of Chinese descent have become interested in learning the language, specifically People's Republic of China.- Over 2 million Americans speak some variety of Chinese, with the Mandarin variety becoming increasingly more prevalent due to the opening up of the PRC.

- In New York City at least, although Mandarin is spoken as a native language among only 10% of Chinese speakers, it is used as a secondary dialect among the greatest number of them and is on its way to replace Cantonese as their lingua franca ( the language used to communicate between people who speak different native languages)

- The Chinese American community is the largest ethnic group of Asian Americans, consisting of 22.4% of the Asian American population. They constitute 1.2% of the United States as a whole. In 2006, the Chinese American population numbered approximately 3.6 million.

- Although Chinese Americans grow up learning English, some teach their children Chinese for a variety of reasons: preservation of an ancient civilization, preservation of a unique identity, pride in their cultural ancestry, desire for easy communication with them and other relatives, and the perception that Chinese will be a very useful language as China's economic strength increases.

According to the 2009 American Community Survey, the three metropolitan areas with the largest Chinese American populations were

-The Greater New York Combined Statistical Area at about 666,000 people,

- the San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland Combined Statistical Area at about 562,000 people,

-the Greater Los Angeles Combined Statistical Area at about 495,000 people.

China

Zhōngguó/中国

What are some of your opinions of the

Chinese culture?

Popularity in the USA, cont.Chinese contributions:

- building Western half of the Transcontinental railroad and levees in the Sacramento River Delta;

- the popularization of Chinese American food;

- technological innovation and entrepreneurship;

- the introduction of Chinese and East Asian culture to America, such as Buddhism, Taoism, and Kung fu.

Chinese immigrants to the United States brought many of their ideas, ideals and values with them. Some of these have continued to influence later generations.

- Confucian respect for elders and filial piety.

Similarly education and the civil service were the most important path for upward social mobility in China.

The first Broadway show about Asian Americans was Flower Drum Song

In most American cities with Chinese populations, the new year is celebrated with cultural festivals and parties. In Chinese Culture an Arts Festival is held every year. Other important festivals include the Dragon Boat Festival and the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Analysis indicated that most non-Asian Americans do not differentiate between Chinese Americans and East Asian Americans generally, and perceptions of both groups are nearly identical.

A 2001 survey of Americans' attitudes toward Asian Americans and Chinese Americans indicated that one fourth of the respondents had somewhat or very negative attitude toward Chinese Americans in general. The study did find several positive perceptions of Chinese Americans: strong family values (91%); honesty as business people (77%); high value on education (67%).

China

Map of Where It Is Spoken

openlearn.open.ac.ukChina

Numbers

On Subtab on Livebinders with pronunciation

China

Proverbs

• A closed mind is like a closed book, just a block of wood.

• To know the road ahead, ask those who are coming back.

• There are always ears on the other side or the wall.

• Be not afraid of growing slowly; be afraid only of standing up.

• Dream different dreams while on the same bed.

• A fall into the ditch makes you wiser.

• A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.

• Make happy those who are near and those who are far will come.

• A single conversation with a wise man is better than ten years of study.

• Clear conscience never fears midnight knocking.

China

Cultural Facts- It is one of the most difficult languages for native English speakers to learn- China is often considered the longest continuous civilization, with some historians marking 6000 B.C. as the dawn of Chinese civilization. It also has the world’s longest continuously used written language.- China is a communist country- China’s Great Wall is one of a handful of man made objects seen from outer space- Ice Cream was invented in China around 2000 B.C. when they packed a soft milk in rice mixture in the snow.- China is sometimes one day ahead of the USA.- There are 58 different ethnic groups in China- Red is considered a lucky color in China- Families are only allowed to have one child each. It is the most populated country in the world.- The Chinese invented paper, the compass, gunpowder, and printing.- Toilet paper was invented in China in the late 1300s. It was for emperors only.- Cricket fighting is a popular amusement in China. Many Chinese children keep crickets as pets.

China

Chinese Calendar

China

Chinese Finger Counting

Mandarin Numbers

Chinese Colors Song

Chinese Colors