Taiwanese Mandarin
Encyclopedia
Taiwanese Mandarin is a variant of Mandarin derived from the official Standard Mandarin
spoken in Taiwan Area of the Republic of China
(Taiwan
). The latter's standard lect is known in Taiwan as 國語 (Guóyǔ, Kuo-yü), based on the phonology
of the Beijing dialect
together with the grammar
of Vernacular Chinese
. Taiwanese Mandarin is almost identical except for the writing systems with the official Standard Mandarin used in the People's Republic of China
, which is called Pǔtōnghuà (普通话).
In contrast, Mandarin as spoken informally in Taiwan has some notable differences in vocabulary
, grammar
and pronunciation
with official Standard Mandarin
, differences which have arisen mainly under influence from Taiwanese Hokkien (臺灣閩南語, first language/lect of about 70% of the population of Taiwan), other mother tongues of Taiwan
as Hakka (客家話, spoken natively by about 15% of the Taiwanese) and Formosan languages
, additionally English
, and Japanese
from the prior Japanese period
.
took over Taiwan and surrounding islands from Japan
, Mandarin was introduced as the official language and made compulsory in schools. A Mandarin Promotion Council
(now called National Languages Committee) was established in 1946 by Chen Yi
(陳儀) to standardize and popularize the usage of Standard Mandarin
in Taiwan. The Council was led by 21 Chinese Scholars such as Wei Jiangong (魏建功), He Rong (何容), Qi Tiehen (齊鐵恨), Wang Yuchuan (王玉川), Fang Shiduo (方師鐸), Zhu Zhaoxiang
(朱兆祥), Wu Shouli (吳守禮) etc. (From 1895 to 1945, Japanese
was the official language and taught in schools.) Since then, Mandarin has been established as a lingua franca
among the various groups in Taiwan: the majority Han ethnic Hoklo, the Hakka
who have their own spoken language, Mainlanders whose native tongue may be any Chinese variant from mainland China, and the Indigenous Taiwanese who speak Indigenous languages.
Until the 1980s the Kuomintang
administration heavily promoted the use of Standard Mandarin and discouraged the use of Taiwanese and other vernaculars, even portraying them as inferior. Mandarin was the only sanctioned language for use in the media. This produced a backlash in the 1990s. Although some supporters of Taiwan independence
tend to be opposed to standard Mandarin in favor of Taiwanese, efforts to replace standard Mandarin either with Taiwanese or with a multi-lingual standard have not been successful. Today, Mandarin is taught by immersion starting in elementary school. After the second grade, the entire educational system is in Mandarin, except for local language classes that have been taught for a few hours each week starting in the mid-1990s.
Taiwanese Mandarin (as with Singlish
and many other situations of a creole speech community
) is spoken at different levels according to the social class and situation of the speakers. Formal occasions call for the acrolectal level of Guoyu (Standard Mandarin). Less formal situations often result in the basilect form, which has more uniquely Taiwanese features. Bilingual speakers often code-switch
between Mandarin and Taiwanese, sometimes in the same sentence.
Mandarin is spoken fluently by almost the entire Taiwanese population, except for some elderly people who were educated under Japanese rule. In the capital Taipei
, where there is a high concentration of Mainlanders whose native language is not Taiwanese, Mandarin is used in greater frequency and fluency than other parts of Taiwan.
, rather in than vowels or consonants. The second is more general, with differences being unofficial and arising through Taiwanese Hokkien influence on Guoyu (國語 Guóyǔ).
, between Guoyu and Putonghua.
The following is a partial list of such differences:
In basilectal Taiwanese Mandarin, sounds that do not occur in Taiwanese are replaced by sounds from that language. These variations from Standard Mandarin are similar to the variations of Mandarin spoken in southern China. Using the Hanyu Pinyin system, the following sound changes take place (going from Putonghua to Taiwanese Mandarin followed with an example):
In some contexts, the construction involving is used where the sentence final particle would normally be applied to denote perfect. For instance, Taiwanese Mandarin more commonly uses "" to mean "Have you eaten?" whereas standard Mandarin uses "". This is due to the influence of Min Nan
grammar, which uses ū in a similar fashion.
, idiom
s, and words specific to living in Taiwan. Because of the limited transfer of information between mainland China and Taiwan after the Chinese civil war, many items that were invented after this split have different names in Guoyu and Putonghua. Additionally, many terms were adopted from Japanese both as a result of its close proximity (Okinawa) as well as Taiwan's status as a Japanese territory
in the first half of the 20th century.
. Often there are alternative unambiguous terms which can be understood by both sides.
(phonetical or semantical
), even the number of characters may different. For example, American President Obama's surname is called 奥巴马
Àobāmǎ in Putonghua (adopted from Cantonese ou3 baa1 maa5) and 歐巴馬 or 歐巴瑪 Ōubāmǎ in Guoyu. Also, in Taiwanese Mandarin, rhotacization (Erhua
) is generally avoided.
From English
The term "machi" ( májí) borrowed from the English term "match", is used to describe items or people which complement each other well. Note that this term has become popular in mainland China as well.
The English term "hamburger
" has been adopted in many Chinese speaking communities. In Taiwan, the preferred form is (hànbǎo) rather than the Mainland Chinese (hànbǎobāo).
The Guoyu term "fensi 粉絲," borrowed from the English term "fans", is used to describe fans or people who idolize a superstar，it's now also prevalent in Mainland china since talent show boom heated in 2000s.
The terms " agōng" and " amà" are more commonly heard than the standard Mandarin terms yéye (paternal grandfather), wàigōng (maternal grandfather), nǎinai (paternal grandmother) and wàipó (maternal grandmother).
Some local foods usually are referred to using their Taiwanese names. These include:
List of Taiwanese words commonly found in local Mandarin language newspapers and periodicals
description for food—soft and pliable (like mochi cakes)
LKK
old and senile
to muck around
I beg your pardon; I am sorry; Excuse me.
to be well suited to each other
an event; a matter; an affair
1
1can not bear something
to win an election
(you have/he has) lost (your/his) mind!
to go off the rails; to go wrong
driver (of automotive vehicles; from Japanese うんちゃん unchan, slang for 運転士 untenshi)
depressed; sulky; unhappy; moody
From Japanese
Japanese loanword
s based on kanji
, now pronounced using Mandarin.
Japanese loanwords based on phonetics
, transliterated using Chinese characters with similar pronunciation in Mandarin or Taiwanese
.
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
spoken in Taiwan Area of the Republic of China
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
(Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
). The latter's standard lect is known in Taiwan as 國語 (Guóyǔ, Kuo-yü), based on the phonology
Phonology
Phonology is, broadly speaking, the subdiscipline of linguistics concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the field of linguistics studying this use...
of the Beijing dialect
Beijing dialect
Beijing dialect, or Pekingese , is the dialect of Mandarin spoken in the urban area of Beijing, China. It is the phonological basis of Standard Chinese, which is used by the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China , and Singapore....
together with the grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
of Vernacular Chinese
Vernacular Chinese
Written Vernacular Chinese refers to forms of written Chinese based on the vernacular language, in contrast to Classical Chinese, the written standard used from the Spring and Autumn Period to the early twentieth century...
. Taiwanese Mandarin is almost identical except for the writing systems with the official Standard Mandarin used in the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, which is called Pǔtōnghuà (普通话).
In contrast, Mandarin as spoken informally in Taiwan has some notable differences in vocabulary
Vocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
, grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
and pronunciation
Pronunciation
Pronunciation refers to the way a word or a language is spoken, or the manner in which someone utters a word. If one is said to have "correct pronunciation", then it refers to both within a particular dialect....
with official Standard Mandarin
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
, differences which have arisen mainly under influence from Taiwanese Hokkien (臺灣閩南語, first language/lect of about 70% of the population of Taiwan), other mother tongues of Taiwan
Languages of Taiwan
The language with the most native speakers in Taiwan is Taiwanese Hokkien, or "Taiwanese" for short. Hokkien is a topolect of the Chinese family of languages originating in southern Fujian and is spoken by many overseas Chinese throughout Southeast Asia...
as Hakka (客家話, spoken natively by about 15% of the Taiwanese) and Formosan languages
Formosan languages
The Formosan languages are the languages of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan. Taiwanese aborigines currently comprise about 2% of the island's population. However, far fewer can still speak their ancestral language, after centuries of language shift...
, additionally English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, and Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
from the prior Japanese period
Taiwan under Japanese rule
Between 1895 and 1945, Taiwan was a dependency of the Empire of Japan. The expansion into Taiwan was a part of Imperial Japan's general policy of southward expansion during the late 19th century....
.
Usage
In 1945 when Republic of ChinaRepublic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
took over Taiwan and surrounding islands from Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
, Mandarin was introduced as the official language and made compulsory in schools. A Mandarin Promotion Council
Mandarin Promotion Council
The National Languages Committee, formerly Mandarin Promotion Council was established by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of China, commonly known as "Taiwan", with the purpose of standardizing and popularizing the usage of Mandarin in the Republic of China.It was created as the...
(now called National Languages Committee) was established in 1946 by Chen Yi
Chen Yi (Kuomintang)
Chen Yi and later Gongqia , sobriquet Tuisu ; 1883 – June 18, 1950) was the Chief Executive and Garrison Commander of Taiwan after it was surrendered by Japan to the Republic of China, which acted on behalf of the Allied Powers, in 1945...
(陳儀) to standardize and popularize the usage of Standard Mandarin
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
in Taiwan. The Council was led by 21 Chinese Scholars such as Wei Jiangong (魏建功), He Rong (何容), Qi Tiehen (齊鐵恨), Wang Yuchuan (王玉川), Fang Shiduo (方師鐸), Zhu Zhaoxiang
Zhu Zhaoxiang
Zhu Zhaoxiang , aka Zhao-xiang Zhu, is a Chinese engineer, educator and the main pioneer of explosive mechanics in modern China. Zhu was the 1st President of Ningbo University.-Biography:...
(朱兆祥), Wu Shouli (吳守禮) etc. (From 1895 to 1945, Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
was the official language and taught in schools.) Since then, Mandarin has been established as a lingua franca
Lingua franca
A lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic...
among the various groups in Taiwan: the majority Han ethnic Hoklo, the Hakka
Hakka people
The Hakka , sometimes Hakka Han, are Han Chinese who speak the Hakka language and have links to the provincial areas of Guangdong, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan and Fujian in China....
who have their own spoken language, Mainlanders whose native tongue may be any Chinese variant from mainland China, and the Indigenous Taiwanese who speak Indigenous languages.
Until the 1980s the Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
administration heavily promoted the use of Standard Mandarin and discouraged the use of Taiwanese and other vernaculars, even portraying them as inferior. Mandarin was the only sanctioned language for use in the media. This produced a backlash in the 1990s. Although some supporters of Taiwan independence
Taiwan independence
Taiwan independence is a political movement whose goals are primarily to formally establish the Republic of Taiwan by renaming or replacing the Republic of China , form a Taiwanese national identity, reject unification and One country, two systems with the People's Republic of China and a Chinese...
tend to be opposed to standard Mandarin in favor of Taiwanese, efforts to replace standard Mandarin either with Taiwanese or with a multi-lingual standard have not been successful. Today, Mandarin is taught by immersion starting in elementary school. After the second grade, the entire educational system is in Mandarin, except for local language classes that have been taught for a few hours each week starting in the mid-1990s.
Taiwanese Mandarin (as with Singlish
Singlish
Colloquial Singaporean English, also known as Singlish, is an English-based creole language spoken in Singapore.Singlish is commonly regarded with low prestige in Singapore. The Singaporean government and many Singaporeans alike heavily discourage the use of Singlish in favour of Standard English...
and many other situations of a creole speech community
Post-creole speech continuum
The Post-creole continuum or simply creole continuum refers to a situation wherein a creole language consists of a spectrum of varieties between those most and least similar to the superstrate language...
) is spoken at different levels according to the social class and situation of the speakers. Formal occasions call for the acrolectal level of Guoyu (Standard Mandarin). Less formal situations often result in the basilect form, which has more uniquely Taiwanese features. Bilingual speakers often code-switch
Code-switching
In linguistics, code-switching is the concurrent use of more than one language, or language variety, in conversation. Multilinguals—people who speak more than one language—sometimes use elements of multiple languages in conversing with each other...
between Mandarin and Taiwanese, sometimes in the same sentence.
Mandarin is spoken fluently by almost the entire Taiwanese population, except for some elderly people who were educated under Japanese rule. In the capital Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
, where there is a high concentration of Mainlanders whose native language is not Taiwanese, Mandarin is used in greater frequency and fluency than other parts of Taiwan.
Pronunciation
There are two categories of pronunciation differences. The first is of characters that have an official pronunciation that differs from Putonghua (普通话 Pǔtōnghuà), primarily in the form of differences in toneTone (linguistics)
Tone is the use of pitch in language to distinguish lexical or grammatical meaning—that is, to distinguish or inflect words. All verbal languages use pitch to express emotional and other paralinguistic information, and to convey emphasis, contrast, and other such features in what is called...
, rather in than vowels or consonants. The second is more general, with differences being unofficial and arising through Taiwanese Hokkien influence on Guoyu (國語 Guóyǔ).
Variant official pronunciations
There are a few differences in official pronunciations, mainly in toneTone (linguistics)
Tone is the use of pitch in language to distinguish lexical or grammatical meaning—that is, to distinguish or inflect words. All verbal languages use pitch to express emotional and other paralinguistic information, and to convey emphasis, contrast, and other such features in what is called...
, between Guoyu and Putonghua.
The following is a partial list of such differences:
| Putonghua (PRC) | Guoyu (ROC) | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|
| (or 拉圾) ("garbage") |
lājī | lèsè | The pronunciation of lèsè originates from the Wu dialect and was the common pronunciation in China before 1949. |
| (液体) ("liquid") |
yètǐ | yìtǐ | |
| ("and") |
hé | hàn | hé is standard in Taiwan. hàn is common. |
| ("week") |
xīngqī | xīngqí | |
| (企业) ("enterprise") |
qǐyè | qìyè | |
| (危险) ("danger") |
wēixiǎn | wéixiǎn | |
| (包括) ("including") |
bāokuò | bāoguā | bāokuò is also used in Taiwan |
Taiwanese-influenced
In acrolectal Taiwanese Mandarin:- the retroflex sounds (ch, zh, sh, r) from Putonghua are pronounced more like alveolo-palatal affricates and fricativeAlveolo-palatal fricativeAlveolo-palatal fricative may refer to the following two consonants:*Voiced alveolo-palatal fricative*Voiceless alveolo-palatal fricative...
s. - erhuaErhuaErhua ; also called erhuayin refers to a phonological process that adds r-coloring or the "ér" sound to syllables in spoken Mandarin Chinese. It is most common in the speech varieties of North China, especially in the Beijing dialect, as a diminutive suffix for nouns, though some dialects also...
is very rarely heard - the syllable written as is pronounced as [fʊŋ] in all tones.
- Isochrony is considerably more syllable-timed than in other Mandarin dialects (including Putonghua), which are stress-timed. Consequently, the "neutral tone" (輕聲) does not occur as often.
In basilectal Taiwanese Mandarin, sounds that do not occur in Taiwanese are replaced by sounds from that language. These variations from Standard Mandarin are similar to the variations of Mandarin spoken in southern China. Using the Hanyu Pinyin system, the following sound changes take place (going from Putonghua to Taiwanese Mandarin followed with an example):
- f- becomes hu- (fan → huan ) (This applies to native HokloHokloHoklo can mean the following:* The Hoklo people, a geographically widespread cultural-linguistic group originating in southeast China , also called Hokkien.* Min Nan, the Chinese language group spoken by the Hoklo....
speakers - Hakka speakers maintain precisely the opposite: (e.g. hua → fa )) - qi can become ki
- -ie, ye becomes ei (tie → tei)
- chi (stand-alone) becomes tu (chi → tu)
- ch- becomes c- (chuan → cuan )
- r- becomes l- (ren → len) or [z]
- zh-, zhi becomes z-, zi (zhao → zao )
- sh-, shi becomes s-, si (shuo → suo )
- yu becomes yi (yue → ye )
- the diphthongDiphthongA diphthong , also known as a gliding vowel, refers to two adjacent vowel sounds occurring within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: That is, the tongue moves during the pronunciation of the vowel...
s ei and ou are monophthongMonophthongA monophthong is a pure vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end is relatively fixed, and which does not glide up or down towards a new position of articulation....
ized as /e/ and /o/ respectively
Grammar
The standard Mandarin construct (have or not have) is not as commonly used in Taiwanese Mandarin as in standard Mandarin. For example, the sentence "Do you have a car?" is as follows:- Taiwanese Mandarin: (lit. "you have or not have a car?")
- PRC Mandarin: (lit. "you have a car or not have?")
In some contexts, the construction involving is used where the sentence final particle would normally be applied to denote perfect. For instance, Taiwanese Mandarin more commonly uses "" to mean "Have you eaten?" whereas standard Mandarin uses "". This is due to the influence of Min Nan
Min Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
grammar, which uses ū in a similar fashion.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary differences can be divided into several categories – particles, different usage of the same term, loan words, technological wordsJargon
Jargon is terminology which is especially defined in relationship to a specific activity, profession, group, or event. The philosophe Condillac observed in 1782 that "Every science requires a special language because every science has its own ideas." As a rationalist member of the Enlightenment he...
, idiom
Idiom
Idiom is an expression, word, or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is comprehended in regard to a common use of that expression that is separate from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made...
s, and words specific to living in Taiwan. Because of the limited transfer of information between mainland China and Taiwan after the Chinese civil war, many items that were invented after this split have different names in Guoyu and Putonghua. Additionally, many terms were adopted from Japanese both as a result of its close proximity (Okinawa) as well as Taiwan's status as a Japanese territory
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
in the first half of the 20th century.
Particles
Spoken Taiwanese Mandarin uses a number of Taiwan specific (but not exclusive) final particles, such as 囉 (luō), 嘛(ma), 喔 (ō), 耶 (yē), 咧 (lie),齁 (hō), 咩(mei),唷(yō) etc.Same words, different meaning
Some terms have different meanings in Taiwan and mainland China, which can sometimes lead to misunderstandings between speakers of resp. sides of the Taiwan StraitTaiwan Strait
The Taiwan Strait or Formosa Strait, formerly known as the Black Ditch, is a 180-km-wide strait separating Mainland China and Taiwan. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to East China Sea to the northeast...
. Often there are alternative unambiguous terms which can be understood by both sides.
| Term | Meaning in Taiwan | Meaning in mainland China | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| tǔ dòu |
peanut | potato | Unambiguous terms: (peanut)/ (potato). |
| gǎo |
to carry out something insidious, to screw/fuck (vulgar) | to do, to perform a task | As such, it is a verb that is rarely seen in any official or formal setting in Taiwan, whereas it is widely used in mainland China even by its top officials in official settings. |
| (T Traditional Chinese character Traditional Chinese characters refers to Chinese characters in any character set which does not contain newly created characters or character substitutions performed after 1946. It most commonly refers to characters in the standardized character sets of Taiwan, of Hong Kong, or in the Kangxi... ) (S Simplified Chinese character Simplified Chinese characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Xiandai Hanyu Tongyong Zibiao for use in Mainland China. Along with traditional Chinese characters, it is one of many standard character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language... ) wō xīn |
a kind of warm feeling | having an uneased mind | |
| (T) (S) chū zū chē |
rental car | taxi | In Taiwan, taxis are called / (jì chéng chē), which is used less frequently in mainland China. |
| yán jiū suǒ (mainland China) yán jiù suǒ (Taiwan) |
graduate school | research institute | |
| (T) (S) ài rén |
lover (unmarried)/mistress | spouse | this term in the sense of "spouse" is falling out of use in mainland China |
Different preferred usage
Some terms can be understood by both sides to mean the same thing; however, their preferred usage differs.| Term | Taiwan | mainland China |
|---|---|---|
| tomato | fān qié literally, "barbarian/foreign eggplant" |
(S) xī hóng shì literally, "western red persimmon" (T) |
| box lunch | (T) biàn dāng (loanword from Japanese bentō Bento is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware... 弁当) (S) |
(S) hé fàn (T) |
| bicycle | (T) jiǎotàchē literally, "pedaling/foot-stamp vehicle" (phonetic loan from Japanese jitensha 自転車) (S) |
(S) zìxíngchē literally, "oneself-propelled vehicle" (T) |
| kindergarten | (T) yòuzhìyuán (loanword from Japanese yōchien 幼稚園) (S) |
(S) yòu'éryuán (T) |
| pineapple | (T) fènglí (S) |
(S) bōluó (T) |
Loan words
Loan words may differ largely between Putonghua and Taiwanese Mandarin, as different characters or methods may be chosen for transliterationTransliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
(phonetical or semantical
Semantics
Semantics is the study of meaning. It focuses on the relation between signifiers, such as words, phrases, signs and symbols, and what they stand for, their denotata....
), even the number of characters may different. For example, American President Obama's surname is called 奥巴马
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
Àobāmǎ in Putonghua (adopted from Cantonese ou3 baa1 maa5) and 歐巴馬 or 歐巴瑪 Ōubāmǎ in Guoyu. Also, in Taiwanese Mandarin, rhotacization (Erhua
Erhua
Erhua ; also called erhuayin refers to a phonological process that adds r-coloring or the "ér" sound to syllables in spoken Mandarin Chinese. It is most common in the speech varieties of North China, especially in the Beijing dialect, as a diminutive suffix for nouns, though some dialects also...
) is generally avoided.
From EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
The term "machi" ( májí) borrowed from the English term "match", is used to describe items or people which complement each other well. Note that this term has become popular in mainland China as well.
The English term "hamburger
Hamburger
A hamburger is a sandwich consisting of a cooked patty of ground meat usually placed inside a sliced bread roll...
" has been adopted in many Chinese speaking communities. In Taiwan, the preferred form is (hànbǎo) rather than the Mainland Chinese (hànbǎobāo).
The Guoyu term "fensi 粉絲," borrowed from the English term "fans", is used to describe fans or people who idolize a superstar，it's now also prevalent in Mainland china since talent show boom heated in 2000s.
From Taiwanese
The terms " agōng" and " amà" are more commonly heard than the standard Mandarin terms yéye (paternal grandfather), wàigōng (maternal grandfather), nǎinai (paternal grandmother) and wàipó (maternal grandmother).
Some local foods usually are referred to using their Taiwanese names. These include:
| Taiwanese | POJ | IPA International Phonetic Alphabet The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic... |
English |
|---|---|---|---|
| chhoah-peng | tsʰuaʔ˥˧piŋ˥ | Shaved ice with sliced fresh fruit on top (usually strawberry, kiwi or mango) | |
| môa-chî | mua˧tɕi˧˥ | glutinous rice cakes (see Mochi) | |
| ô-á-chian | o˧a˥tɕiɛn˥ | oyster omelette Oyster omelette Oyster omelette is a Chinese dish of Teochew/Fujian origin, made famous in Taiwan... |
List of Taiwanese words commonly found in local Mandarin language newspapers and periodicals
| As seen in two popular newspapers | Taiwanese (POJ) | Mandarin Equivalent (Pinyin) | English | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
a local tyrant; a bully | |||||
ㄍㄧㄥ
|
|
|
obstinate(ly), tense (as of fe sing/performing) | |||||
|
|
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to like | |||||
|
|
|
shy; bashful; sense of shame | |||||
|
|
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to end up with nothing | |||||
|
|
|
picky; high-maintenance | |||||
| Q |
|
|
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (lāu-khok-khok) |
| lau˨˩ kʰɔk˥kʰɔk˩ |
| (lǎotàilóngzhōng) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (pha-pha-cháu) |
| pʰa˧pʰa˧tsau˥˧ |
| (dōngbēnxīpǎo) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (pháiⁿ-sè) |
| pʰãi˥se˨˩ |
| (bù hǎo yìsi) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (sù-phòe) |
| su˥˧pʰue˨˩ |
| (xiāngpèi) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (tāi-chì) |
| tai˨˩tɕi˨˩ |
| (shìqing) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (tòng-bē-tiâu) |
| tɔŋ˥˧be˨˩tiau˧˥ |
| (shòu bù liǎo) |
| ² |
| (dǎng bù zhù) |
| ²compelled to do something |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (tòng-soán) |
| tɔŋ˥˧suan˥˧ |
| (dāngxuǎn) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (thâu-khak pháiⁿ-khì) |
| tʰau˧kʰak˥pʰãi˥˧kʰi˨˩ |
| (nǎojīn yǒu wèntí) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (thut-chhôe) |
| tʰut˥tsʰue˧˥ |
| (chūguǐ) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (ūn-chiàng) |
| un˨˩tɕiaŋ˨˩ |
| (sījī) |
| China Times |
| Liberty Times |
| (ut-chut) |
| ut˥tsut˩ |
| (mènmènbùlè) |
From JapaneseJapanese languageis a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
Japanese loanword
Loanword
A loanword is a word borrowed from a donor language and incorporated into a recipient language. By contrast, a calque or loan translation is a related concept where the meaning or idiom is borrowed rather than the lexical item itself. The word loanword is itself a calque of the German Lehnwort,...
s based on kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
, now pronounced using Mandarin.
| Japanese (Romaji) | Taiwanese Mandarin (Pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into... ) |
PRC Mandarin (Pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into... ) |
English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (bentō Bento is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware... ) |
(biàndāng) | (héfàn) | A boxed lunch. | 弁当 in Japanese was borrowed from a Classical Chinese term using different characters but reintroduced to Taiwan via Mandarin as 便當 via different characters via 便 instead of 弁 because 便 means "convenient" which certainly is what a bento box is. In China, they used the semantic approach, and used a totally different term 盒饭 from Cantonese via Hong Kong meaning "boxed rice/meal/lunch" |
| (tatsujin) | (dárén) | (gāoshǒu) | Someone who is very talented at doing something (a pro or expert) or adult. Also written 大人。 | 達人 has the same meaning in classical Chinese, but not widely used in vernacular Chinese in mainland china. |
| 中古 (chūko) | (zhōnggǔ) | (èrshǒu) | Used, second-hand. |
Japanese loanwords based on phonetics
Phonetics
Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech, or—in the case of sign languages—the equivalent aspects of sign. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds or signs : their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory...
, transliterated using Chinese characters with similar pronunciation in Mandarin or Taiwanese
Taiwanese
Taiwanese may refer to:* things of or pertaining to the current Republic of China, commonly known as Taiwan* things of or pertaining to the island of Taiwan* Taiwanese people, residents of Taiwan or people of Taiwanese descent...
.
| Japanese (Romaji) | Taiwanese Mandarin (Pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into... ) |
English |
|---|---|---|
| (baka) | (bàkā) or similar variant. | A foolish person. |
| (kimochi) | (qíméngzǐ) | Mood; Feeling. |
| (obāsan) | (ōubāsāng - most people in Taiwan will use the Taiwanese pronunciation (POJ: o·-bá-sáng, ɔ˧ba˥saŋ˥˧)) | Auntie. |
| (oden Oden Oden is a Japanese winter dish consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon radish, konnyaku, and processed fish cakes stewed in a light, soy-flavoured dashi broth. Ingredients vary according to region and between each household... ) |
(hēilún) | A type of stewed flour-based snack/sidedish. |
| (ojīsan) | (ōujísāng) | Uncle. |
| (ōtobai) | (ōuduōbài) | An Autobike or motorcycle Motorcycle A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most... . |
Technical terms
Taiwanese Mandarin (Pinyin)
|
PRC Mandarin (Pinyin)
|
English | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
(bùluògé)
|
(bókè)
|
Blog Blog A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in... |
||||
(guāngdié)
|
(guāngpán)
|
Optical disc Optical disc In computing and optical disc recording technologies, an optical disc is a flat, usually circular disc which encodes binary data in the form of pits and lands on a special material on one of its flat surfaces... |
||||
(huáshǔ)
|
(shǔbiāo)
|
mouse (computing) Mouse (computing) In computing, a mouse is a pointing device that functions by detecting two-dimensional motion relative to its supporting surface. Physically, a mouse consists of an object held under one of the user's hands, with one or more buttons... |
||||
(jìchéngchē)
|
(chūzūchē)
|
Taxicab Taxicab A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice... |
||||
(jiāhùbìngfáng)
|
(jiānhùbìngfáng)
|
Intensive Care Unit (ICU); Intensive Treatment Unit (ITU) | ||||
(léishè)
|
(jīguāng)
|
Laser Laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation... |
||||
(lùyǐngjī)
|
(lùxiàngjī)
|
videocassette recorder Videocassette recorder The videocassette recorder , is a type of electro-mechanical device that uses removable videocassettes that contain magnetic tape for recording analog audio and analog video from broadcast television so that the images and sound can be played back at a more convenient time... |
||||
(ruǎntǐ)
|
(ruǎnjiàn)
|
software | ||||
([wǎngjì] wǎnglù)
|
(hùliánwǎng), (wǎngluo)
|
Internet Internet The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide... |
||||
(yìnbiǎojī)
|
(dǎyìnjī)
|
computer printer Computer printer In computing, a printer is a peripheral which produces a text or graphics of documents stored in electronic form, usually on physical print media such as paper or transparencies. Many printers are primarily used as local peripherals, and are attached by a printer cable or, in most new printers, a... |
||||
(yìngdié)
|
(yìngpán)
|
Hard disk Hard disk A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the... |
||||
(yíngmù)
|
(xiǎnshìqì)
|
computer monitor (螢幕 is the equivalent of "screen (noun)" in English, while 显示 means "to display" in English) | ||||
(zīliàokù)
|
(shùjùkù)
|
database | ||||
(zīxùn)
|
(xìnxī)
|
Information Information Information in its most restricted technical sense is a message or collection of messages that consists of an ordered sequence of symbols, or it is the meaning that can be interpreted from such a message or collection of messages. Information can be recorded or transmitted. It can be recorded as... |
||||
(zuòyè xìtǒng)
|
(cāozuò xìtǒng)
|
operating system Operating system An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system... |
Idioms and proverbs
Taiwanese Mandarin (Pinyin)
|
PRC Mandarin (Pinyin)
|
English | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
垂手可得 (chuí shǒu kě dé)
|
唾手可得 (tuò shǒu kě dé)
|
extremely easy to obtain | ||||
(yī cù kě jī)
|
(yī cù ér jiù)
|
to reach a goal in one step | ||||
(yī lǎn wú yí)
|
(yī lǎn wú yú)
|
to take in everything at a glance | ||||
(rù jìng suí sú)
|
入乡随俗 (rù xiāng suí sú)
|
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. |
Words specific to living in Taiwan
| Mandarin Google hits: .tw Google hits: .cn |
Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| .tw: 261,000 .cn: 4,330 |
ānqīnbān | after school childcare (lit. happy parents class) |
| .tw: 78,400 .cn: 992 |
bǎngzhuāng | pork barrel Pork barrel Pork barrel is a derogatory term referring to appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district... (lit. bind stumps together) |
| .tw: 918,000 .cn: 204,000 |
biàndāng | a box meal (from Japanese, bento Bento is a single-portion takeout or home-packed meal common in Japanese cuisine. A traditional bento consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables, usually in a box-shaped container. Containers range from disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware... ), word traditionally means "convenient" |
| .tw: 38,200 .cn: 8,620 |
gékuí | the premier Premier of the Republic of China The President of the Executive Yuan , commonly known as the Premier of the Republic of China , is the head of the Executive Yuan, the executive branch of the Republic of China , which currently administers Taiwan, Matsu, and Kinmen. The premier is appointed by the President of the Republic of China... (surname + kui for short) |
| .tw: 761,000 .cn: 827,000 |
gōngchē | public bus (in the PRC, 公车 also/mainly refers to government owned vehicles) |
| .tw: 2,500,000 .cn: 692,000 |
jīchē | motor scooter/(slang) someone or something extremely annoying or irritating (means "locomotive" in mainland China) |
| .tw: 564,000 .cn: 133,000 |
jiǎotàchē | bicycle |
| .tw: 1,320,000 .cn 65,600 |
jiéyùn | rapid transit (e.g. Kaohsiung MRT Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit The Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit System is a rapid transit system covering metropolitan Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Construction of the KMRT started in October 2001. The Red Line and the Orange Line opened on March 9 and September 14, 2008, respectively... , Taipei Metro) |
| .tw: 997,000 .cn: 133,000 |
tǒngyī biānhào | the ID number of a corporation |