Is Mandarin or Cantonese more widely spoken?

Is Mandarin or Cantonese more widely spoken?

Worldwide, there are about 66 million Cantonese speakers. Compare this with Mandarin, which is spoken by about 1 billion people worldwide. Of all languages, Mandarin is the most widely-spoken.

What is the most widely spoken Chinese dialect?

Mandarin Chinese
Mandarin Chinese alone is the most widely spoken native language in the world: nearly a billion within China alone and 1.2 billion worldwide—a few hundred million people more than the next most widespread languages, Spanish and English.

Do most Mandarin speakers understand Cantonese?

However, the two languages are distinct when spoken. Mandarin speakers typically cannot understand Cantonese speakers, and vice versa.

Which Chinese dialect is the hardest?

1. Mandarin Chinese. Interestingly, the hardest language to learn is also the most widely spoken native language in the world. Mandarin Chinese is challenging for a number of reasons.

Is it easier to learn Cantonese or Mandarin?

Mandarin is easier to learn Cantonese is seen to be more difficult because it has from 6 to 9 tones, each of which signify different things (while Mandarin only has 4 tones). In addition, because of its greater prevalence, it is easier to find Mandarin study materials than Cantonese study materials.

Should I say Chinese or Mandarin?

In English-speaking countries, “Mandarin” is usually preferred for the spoken language. “Chinese” or “written Chinese” are correct for the written language. Of course, there are other dialects, including Cantonese, which are no less “Chinese” than the one we also call Standard Chinese or putonghua.

Should I learn Chinese Mandarin or Cantonese?

It really depends on what you want to do. If you’re in Hong Kong, then by all means learn Cantonese. If you want to read Tang poetry, then learn Cantonese, because the poems still rhyme in Cantonese, where they may not in Mandarin. But if you want a generally useful language, learn Mandarin.

Which language is easier to learn Mandarin or Cantonese?

Cantonese is my mother tongue, so I find it the easiest to speak. Having learnt a language with 9 tones first made it much easier to speak Mandarin and Japanese as they both have less tones. Therefore, pronunciation of Cantonese is probably the hardest to learn accurately.

What are the differences between Mandarin and Cantonese?

• Cantonese is older of the two languages being in existence 2000 years ago while Mandarin is just 700-800 years ago. • The characters in Mandarin have been simplified in 1950 while characters in Cantonese are still traditional. • Cantonese has 9 tones while mandarin has just 4 making it easier to learn than Cantonese.

Does Cantonese have a larger vocabulary than Mandarin?

Cantonese has a more abundant vocabulary than Mandarin, and its expression is more vivid.” Now, though, it was becoming “increasingly marginalized”, he said. “Cantonese is not just a language, but for native speakers it is part of our identity.”

What is more popular Cantonese or Mandarin?

Cantonese is known as a more difficult language to learn compared to Mandarin. Both languages have different tones, but the use of tones in Cantonese is even more challenging due to it having between 6 and 9 different tones. Mandarin only has 4.