Burmese names of Chinese dialects
Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2005 2:49 am
Burmese has strange names for the Chinese dialects of Burma (Hokkien, Hakka, Cantonese). Hokkien is [ein ji shei da you], which means long shirts Chinese, Cantonese is [ein ji dou da you], which means short shirts Chinese, and the two main subdialects of Hakka (Guangdong Hakka and Longdi Hakka) are called [ein ji dou sa ka da you], which means Short skirt Chinese) and [ein ji shei sa ka da you], which means Long skirt Chinese. And, Chinese, called [da you] is only a couple of tones off of "one face" in Burmese. Is this supposed to refer to the myth that all Chinese look a like? Can anybody explain the peculiar names of Chinese dialects in Burmese?