Hong Kong's version

[drunk_on_tea]

HongKongers have the tendency to say the "l" sound as replacement in common words that begin with an "n".
In example, "nei hou" would be "lei hou". Just thought that this is cute. That's all =).

[AlexNg]

The more educated hong kongers can distinguish between the "nei" and the "lei". Watch some hong kong serials and you will know what I mean.

Some common hong kongers does not know how to distinguish the "n" and the "l". This is also true for "kwo" and "ko" for the word crossing, the right
pronounciation is "kwo".

[drunk_on_tea]

Ahh I know what you mean. Kwo would be the right pronunciation. Also, I noticed that the words thank you, doi che is the same as Mandarin's duo xie but mmgoi looks like it's purely Cantonese. Am I wrong?

[AlexNg]

Yes, you are right. Do Che is the formal form wherelse Ng Koi is the
common form. Ng Koi has no equivalent in mandarin. In fact, the word
Ng seems to be used in southern chinese dialects only.

[thribbi]

Most of my Hong Kong friends do not seem to differentiate n and l, and often skip w sounds as well (e.g. Gongdung rather than Gwongdung for Guangdong province). Can anyone tell me whether the situation is different in Guangdong province, say Guangzhou? Are these sounds differentiated there?

Correct, mm goi has no direct equivalent in Mandarin but change the mm to bu and the meaning is easy to understand in Mandarin (though no one would ever say 'bu gai' in this context...), compare Mandarin

bu yong xie, yinggai de

I'm not saying the meaning nor the usage is similar, just that the thought process, so to speak, is similar

[Eng Wai]

No no no

Ng Koi should be 毋該 in Mandarin Chinese. Ng Sai is 毋須 in Mandarin Chinese.

Eng Wai

[%sig%]

[Eng Wai]

Ng Koi should be wu2 gai1 in Mandarin Chinese.

The look of wu2 is similar to mu3 (mum) only the two dots are connected and prolonged beyond the boundary.

[Pronounce Properly]

I noticed Hongkongers have a much higher tendency of mispronounce the 'N' compared to Cantonese speakers elsewhere !
This is a complicated issue !
Here are some reasons I can think of:
(1) Mandarin was not taught until recently. If one knows Mandarin, there is less tendency to mispronounce 'N' because 'most' Mandarin 'N' corresponds to 'N' in Cantonese
(2) Cantonese speakers may have been lazier, ie not make an effort to correct OR not even aware those words should be 'N' !
(3) Highly commercial society ! When people are too busy to make money & make a living, they tend to ignore the language.
(4) Education system. There might not have been a system to ensure language teachers to enforce 'N' IF THESE TEACHERS EVER KNOW HOW TO PRONOUNCE 'N' PROPERLY ! This is a real big problem !

The result: Several generations mispronounce 'N', this issue ripples throughout the Cantonese world !

My point is: Please make an effort to speak one's MOTHER TONGUE properly, please show some respect to Cantonese !

[Eng Wai]

Actually what is the difference between n & l in cantonese?

Difference as in usage difference or meaning difference. I m not a cantonese speaker but I understand cantonese.

[Pronounce Properly]

Hi Eng Wai,

It means the word
'Nei(you)' is mispronouced to 'Lei(Mr Lee)'
'Nam(male)' is mispronounced to 'Lam(blue)'
'Nung(thick)' is mispronounced to 'Lung(deaf)'
'Ning(peace)' is mispronounced to 'Ling(age)'
'Nui(female)' is mispronounced to 'Lui(Mr Lui)'
'Nou(angry)' is mispronounced to 'Lou(road)'
'Nao(swear)' is mispronounced to 'Lao'
'Nau(angry)' is mispronounced to 'Lau(like the fly 'chasing' you)
'Num(think)' is mispronounced to 'Lum'
'Nung(overcooked)' is mispronounced to 'Lung(a hole)'
The list goes on..... there are hundreds of these 'N' switched to 'L'

Cantonese speakers: Please pay some respect to our mother tongue & hence respect oneselves ! Westerners always laugh at us (after they know me well) and ask me "How come Chinese(Cantonese) can't pronounce 'N' ? "Chinese(Cantonese) speak: I am lot (not), I can lot (not)"

It's a shame when one does not respect oneself, nobody will !