Hi Aokh
Thank you for sharing with us.
aokh1979 wrote:
I apologise if I may sound a little extreme in the issue where Hokkien is dying away. I am indeed very concerned about the future of my beloved 1st language. It is great to know some great people in this forum who show great interest in Hokkien.
Actually I also think that Hokkien is dying (together with many other languages). It may take many decades, but one thing for sure is its usage is diminishing and unless there is something extraordinary (e.g. PRC mandates Hokkien in schools, which is practically impossible to happen), it is just a matter of time.
I do not fully agree that people in a bilingual environment can be excused from speaking a complete language. I am a Penangite, a Malaysian. The 1st impression I receive from PRC Chinese about Chinese-Malaysian, is our language ability. A bilingual person should be able to express himself in 2 languages, not 1.5 languages.
I agree with you. While it is almost unavoidable to have "rojak" (mixed) terms heard in multi-lingual environment, it is true that bilingual means a good mastery of 2 languages, not 0.5 and 0.5!
...that Hokkien, even in an authentic Hokkien-speaking region like Xiamen, is considered "immature" or "sub-standard"
This attitude is much worse than governmental propaganda to get rid of "dialects". The "self-hating" of many Hokkien people is the primary cause of Hokkien diminishing role.
If we switch on our TV, even programmes from Taiwan, people only remember names in Mandarin. None of the shows actually call someone's name in Hokkien. That does not happen to Cantonese.
Spot on! I always said similar things before in this forum. Cantonese have a strong linguistic identity and they are really proud of it, while many Hokkiens are busy adoring Mandarin and ashamed of their own "dialect". Surely there are still many Hokkiens who are proud (in possitive sense) and actively use Hokkien, yet it is indeed starlting to see how pale we are compared to Cantonese in this aspect.
Some local schools start teaching Hokkien in Xiamen. But if the language is not used within Xiamen families, Hokkien is going to end up like English, a foreign language. However, parents will spend money send their children to English tuition classes, apart from school subjects. But they will never do the same for Hokkien.
Wow, good to hear that Hokkien is being taught in some schools! But you are right, shame on those parents who totally abandon their own language. I understand parental desire for their children to be fluent in Mandarin, but it is totally wrong to just talking to them only in Mandarin. Anyway, children who are raised with multi languages are usually smarter and more creative.
2 weeks ago, I heard a news when I travelled in a bus, in Xiamen. Every public service officer below 50 years old is restricted from speaking Hokkien. Mandarin must be the only language used at government departments.
This is sad but hardly a surprise. PRC is such a hypocrite in "promoting" Minnan cultural link with Taiwan but on the other hand doing such thing.
They have every reason to raise their children multilingual but they do not. Our younger generations will not enjoy the pride of being a polyglot.
They don't know what they are missing. What a pity!
