Shanghainese
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghainese
13-02-12
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Shanghainese (上海闲话 [z̥ɑ̃̀ héɦɛ̃̀ɦʊ̃̀] in Shanghainese), or the Shanghai language
(simplified Chinese: 上海话 or 沪语; traditional Chinese: 上海話 or 滬語), is a dialect of Wu
Chinese spoken in the city of Shanghai and the surrounding region. It is classified as part of
the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. Shanghainese, like other Wu dialects, is largely not
mutually intelligible with other Chinese varieties such as Mandarin. The term "Shanghainese"
in English sometimes refers to all Wu Chinese dialects, though it is only partially intelligible
with some other subbranches of the Wu language group.
Shanghainese is a representative dialect of Northern Wu; it contains vocabulary and
expressions from the entire Northern Wu area (southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang). With
nearly 14 million speakers, Shanghainese is also the largest single coherent form of Wu
Chinese. It once served as the regional lingua franca of the entire Yangtze River Delta region.
Shanghainese is rich in consonants and pure vowels [i y ɪ e ø ɛ ə ɐ a ɑ ɔ ɤ o ʊ u] (of which 8
are phonemic). Like other northern Wu dialects, the Shanghai dialect has voiced initials [b d
ɡ ɦ z v dʑ ʑ]. Neither Mandarin nor Cantonese has voiced stops or affricates. The
Shanghainese tonal system is significantly different from other Chinese languages.
Shanghainese is a language with two live tonal contrasts (high and low), while Mandarin and
Cantonese are contour tonal languages.
[edit] History and current status
This section called "History and current status" may contain inappropriate or
misinterpreted citations that do not verify the text. Please help improve this
article by checking for inaccuracies. (help, talk, get involved!) (July 2011)
Shanghai did not become a regional centre of commerce until it was opened to foreign
investment during the late Qing Dynasty. Consequently, dialects spoken around Shanghai had
long been subordinate to those spoken around Jiaxing and later Suzhou. In the late 19th
century, most vocabulary of the Shanghai region had been a hybrid between Northern Jiangsu
and Ningbo dialects.[1] Since the 1850s, owing to the growth of Shanghai's economy,
Shanghainese has become one of the fastest-developing dialects of Wu Chinese, undergoing
rapid changes and quickly replacing Suzhou dialect as the prestige dialect of the region. It
underwent sustained growth that reached a hiatus in the 1930s during the Republican era,
when migrants arrived in Shanghai and immersed themselves in the local tongue.
After 1949, the government introduced Mandarin as the national language of all China. The
influence of Shanghainese began to wane. Especially since Chinese economic reform began
in 1978, Shanghai became home to a great number of migrants from all over the country. Due
to the national prominence of Mandarin, learning Shanghainese was no longer necessary for
migrants, because those educated after the 1950s could generally communicate in Mandarin.
However, Shanghainese remained a very important part of the city's culture, and retained its
prestige status within the local population. In the 1990s, it was still common for local radio
and television broadcasts to be in Shanghainese. In 1995, a TV series called "Nie Zhai" (the
Evil Debt) was broadcast entirely in Shanghainese; when it was broadcast outside of
Shanghai (mainly in adjacent Wu-speaking provinces) Mandarin subtitles were added. The
Shanghainese TV show "Lao Niang Jiu" (Old Uncle) has been broadcast since 1999, and is
still quite popular among Shanghainese residents. Shanghainese programming has since
declined, over concerns of regionalism/localism accusations.
From 1992 Shanghainese use was discouraged in schools,[2] and many children native to
Shanghai can no longer speak Shanghainese.[3] In addition, Shanghai's emergence as a
cosmopolitan global city consolidated the status of Mandarin as the standard language of
business and services.[1]
Since 2005, new movements have emerged to protect Shanghainese. At municipal legislative
discussions in 2005, former Huju actress Ma Lili moved to "protect" the language, stating
that she was one of the few remaining Huju actresses who still retained authentic classic
Shanghainese pronunciation in their performances. Shanghai's former party boss Chen
Liangyu, a native Shanghainese himself, reportedly supported her proposal.[1] There have
been talks of re-integrating Shanghainese into pre-kindergarten education, because many
children are unable to speak any Shanghainese. Now many Shanghai dialect programs are
running; a citywide program was introduced by the city government's language committee in
2006 to record native speakers of different Shanghainese varieties for archival purposes.[4]
The Shanghai government begun to reverse its course and seek fluent speakers of "real"
authentic Shanghainese, but to their horror, due to the national government's effort to wipe
out dialects and locality-focused aspects of Chinese culture, only two out of thirteen
recruitment stations have found Traditional Shanghainese speakers; the rest of the 14 million
people of Shanghai speak Modern Shanghainese, and it has been predicted that local dialects
will be wiped out. Professor Qian Nairong is working on efforts to save the dialect.[5][6] Qian
Nairong is promoting Shanghainese language and culture in the face of an onslaught of
Mandarin by the national government which left schoolchildren speaking poor Shanghainese.
In response to criticism, Qian reminds people that Shanghainese was once fashionable,
saying, "the popularization of Mandarin doesn’t equal the ban of dialects. It doesn’t make
Mandarin a more civilized language either. Promoting dialects is not a narrow-minded has
localism, as it has been labeled by some netizens.”[7] The singer and composer Eheart Chen
sings many of his songs in Shanghainese instead of Mandarin to preserve the language.[8]
Since 2006 the Modern Baby Kindergarten in Shanghai has prohibited its students from
speaking anything but Shanghainese on Fridays to preserve the dialect.[9]
Professor Qian says that few Shanghainese people over the age of sixty can speak real
Shanghainese, and he urges that Shangahinese be taught in the regular school system from
kindergarten, saying it is the only way to save Shanghainese, and that attempts to introduce it
in university courses and operas are not enough.[10]
Fourteen native Shanghainese speakers had audio recordings made of their Shanghainese on
May 31, 2011. They were selected based on accent purity and other factors.[11]
[edit] Intelligibility and variations
Shanghainese is not mutually intelligible with any dialect of Mandarin. It is around 50%
intelligible (with 28.9% lexical similarity) with the Mandarin heard in Beijing and Standard
Chinese.[12] Modern Shanghainese, however, has been heavily influenced by modern
Mandarin. This makes the Shanghainese spoken by young people in the city different from
that spoken by the older population, sometimes significantly. It also means that inserting
Mandarin into Shanghainese sentences during everyday conversation is very common, at
least amongst young people. Like most subdivisions of Chinese, it is easier for a local
speaker to understand Mandarin than it is for a Mandarin speaker to understand the local
speech.
Shanghainese is part of the larger Wu subgroup of Chinese. It is similar, to a certain degree,
to the language heard in neighboring Kunshan, Suzhou, and Ningbo. People mingling
between these areas do not need to code-switch to Mandarin when they speak to each other.
However, there are noticeable tonal and phonological changes which do not impede
intelligibility. As the dialect continuum of Wu continues to further distances, however,
significant changes occur in phonology and lexicon to the point where it is no longer possible
to converse intelligibly. The majority of Shanghainese speakers find that by Wuxi,
differences become significant and the Wuxi dialect would take weeks to months for a
Shanghainese speaker to fully "pick up". Similarly, Hangzhou dialect is understood by most
Shanghainese speakers, but it is considered "rougher" and does not have as much flow in
comparison. The language evolved in and around Taizhou, Zhejiang, by which point it
becomes difficult for a Shanghainese speaker to comprehend. Wenzhou dialect, spoken in
southern Zhejiang province, although considered part of the Wu subgroup of languages, is
not at all intelligible with Shanghainese.
Shanghainese is not mutually intelligible with Wenzhou dialect, Cantonese, Minnan, or any
other dialect groups of Chinese.
[edit] Sounds
Following conventions of Chinese syllable structure, Shanghainese syllables can be divided
into initials and finals. The initial occupies the first part of the syllable and is optional. The
final occupies the second part of the syllable and can be divided further into an optional
medial and an obligatory rimes (sometimes spelled rhyme). Tone is also a feature of the
syllable in Shanghainese.[13] Syllabic tone, which is typical to the other Sinitic languages, has
largely become verbal tone in Shanghainese.[citation needed]
[edit] Initials
Phonetic Transcription of Initials in Shanghainese
Labial Dental Alveolo-Palatal Velar Glottal
ʔm/m, m̥/m ʔn/n, n̥/n
ʔȵ/ȵ, ȵ̥/ȵ
ʔŋ/ŋ, ŋ̥/ŋ
Nasal
voiceless
p
t
k
ʔ
pʰ
tʰ
kʰ
Plosive aspirated
voiced
b̥/b
d̥/d
ɡ̊/ɡ
voiceless
ts
tɕ
tsʰ
tɕʰ
Affricate aspirated
voiced
d̥ʑ̊/dʑ
voiceless
f
s
ɕ
h
Fricative
voiced
v̥/v
z̥/z
ʑ̊/ʑ
ɦ
l̥ /ʔl
Approximant
Shanghainese has a set of voiced as well as voiceless aspirated and unaspirated plosives. It
also has fricatives, affricates Alveolo-palatal initials.
Voiced stops are voiceless with slack voice phonation in stressed, word initial position.[14]
This phonation (often referred to as murmur) also occurs in zero onset syllables, syllables
beginning with affricates and fricatives, and syllables beginning with sonorants. These
consonants are true voiced in intervocalic position.[15]
[edit] Finals
The following chart lists all possible finals (medials + rimes) in Shanghainese represented in
IPA.[16][17]
Phonetic Transcription of Riming Groups in Shanghainese
Checked
Open
Nasal ending
Short Nucleus checked
Long Nucleus
Short Nucleus + Nasal Ending
by a glottal stop
Rimes Medals + Rimes
Rimes
Medals + Rimes Rimes Medals + Rimes
i
ɪ̆ɲ
ɪ̆ʔ/iɪ̆ʔ
ɯ
ɥɪ̆ ʔ
y
ʏ̆ɲ
ʏ̆ʔ
iɜ
iə̆ɲ
ɯə̆ɲ
iə̆ʔ
ɯə̆ʔ
ɜ¹
ə̆ɲ
ə̆ʔ
iʊ̆ŋ
iʊ̆ʔ
o
ʊ̆ŋ
ʊ̆ʔ
iɔ
iɑ
ɯɑ
ɔ
ɑ̃/ɑ̆ŋ
ia
ɯa
iã
ɯã
iăʔ
ɯăʔ
a
ã/a̯ŋ
ăʔ
iɛ̝
ɯɛ̝
ɛ̝
ɯe
e
iø
ɯø
ø
Syllabic continuants: [z̩] [ʑ̩] [m̩] [ʔn̩] [ɲ̩/ŋ̩] [r̩]
¹The Shanghainese vowel transcribed here as [ɜ] is often broadly transcribed in other
sources as [ɤ].
The Middle Chinese [-ŋ̩] ending rimes in Shanghainese is always retained as [-ŋ̩],
while [-n] and [-m] have either become [-ŋ̩] or have disappeared in Shanghainese.
Middle Chinese [-p -t -k] rimes have become glottal stops [-ʔ].[18]
[edit] Tones
Shanghainese has five phonetically distinguishable tones for single syllables said in
isolation. These tones are illustrated below in Chao tone names. In terms of Middle
Chinese tone designations, the Yin tone category has three tones (yinshang and yinqu
tones have merged into one tone), while the Yang category has two tones (the
yangping, yangshang, and yangqu have merged into one tone).[19][20]
Five Shanghainese Citation Tones
with Middle Chinese Classifications
Ping (平) Shang (上) Qu (去) Ru (入)
Yin (陰)
52 (T1)
Yang (陽)
34 (T2)
14 (T3)
44ʔ (T4)
24ʔ (T5)
The conditioning factors which led to the yin-yang split still exist in Shanghainese, as
they do in other Wu dialects: yang tones are only found with voiced initials [b d ɡ z v
dʑ ʑ m n ɲ ŋ l j w ɦ], while the yin tones are only found with voiceless initials.[citation
needed]
The ru tones are abrupt, and describe those rimes which end in a glottal stop /ʔ/. That
is, both the yin-yang distinction and the ru tones are allophonic (dependent on
syllabic structure). Shanghainese has only a two-way phonemic tone contrast, falling
vs rising, and then only in open syllables with voiceless initials.[citation needed]
[edit] Tone sandhi
Tone sandhi is a process whereby adjacent tones undergo dramatic alteration in
connected speech. Similar to other Northern Wu dialects, Shanghainese is
characterized by two forms of tone sandhi: a word tone sandhi and a phrasal tone
sandhi.
Word tone sandhi in Shanghainese can be described as left-prominent and is
characterized by a dominance of the first syllable over the contour of the entire tone
domain. As a result, the underlying tones of syllables other than the leftmost syllable,
have no effect on the tone contour of the domain. The pattern is generally described
as tone spreading (T1-4) or tone shifting (T5, except for 4- and 5-syllable
compounds, which can undergo spreading or shifting). The table below illustrates
possible tone combinations.
Left-Prominent Sandhi Tone Values
Tone One syllable Two syllables Three syllables Four syllables Five syllables
52
55 22
55 44 22
55 44 33 22 55 44 33 33 22
T1
34
33 44
33 44 22
33 44 33 22 33 44 33 33 22
T2
T3
T4
14
44
11 44
33 44
11 44 11
33 44 22
T5
24
11 24
11 11 24
11 44 33 11
33 44 33 22
11 22 22 24
22 44 33 11
11 44 33 22 11
33 44 33 22 22
11 11 11 11 24
22 44 33 22 11
As an example, in isolation, the two syllables of the word for China are pronounced
with T1 and T4: /tsʊ̆ŋ52/ and /kwə̆ʔ44/. However, when pronounced in combination,
T1 from /tsʊ̆ŋ/ spreads over the compound resulting in the following pattern
/tsʊ̆ŋ55kwə̆ʔ22/. Similarly, the syllables in a common expression for foolish have the
following underlying phonemic and tonal representations: /zə̆ʔ24/ (T5), /sɛ̝52/ (T1),
and /ti34/ (T2). However, the syllables in combination exhibit the T5 shifting pattern
where the first-syllable T5 shifts to the last syllabe in the domain: /zə̆ʔ11sɛ̝11ti24/.[21]
Phrasal tone sandhi in Shanghainese can be described as right-prominent and is
characterized by a right syllable retaining its underlying tone and a left syllable
receiving a mid-level tone based on the underlying tone's register. The table below
indicates possible left syllable tones in right-prominent compounds.[22]
Possible Left Syllable Tone Values in Right-Prominent Sandhi
Tone
Underlying Tone
Neutralized Tone
52
44
T1
34
44
T2
14
33
T3
44
44
T4
24
22
T5
For instance, when combined, /ma14/ and /tɕjɜ34/ become /ma33tɕjɜ34/ (buy wine).
Sometimes meaning can change based on whether left-prominent or right-prominent
sandhi is used. For example, /tsʰɔ34/ and /mi14/ when pronounced /tsʰɔ33mi44/ (i.e.,
with left-prominent sandhi) means fried noodles. When pronounced /tsʰɔ44mi14/ (i.e.,
with right-prominent sandhi), it means to fry noodles.[23]
[edit] Common words and phrases in Shanghainese
Note: Chinese characters for Shanghainese are not standardized and are provided
for reference only. IPA transcription is for the Middle period of modern
Shanghainese (中派上海话), pronunciation of those between 20 and 60 years old.
Translation
Shanghainese
(language)
Shanghainese
(people)
I
IPA
Chinese character
[zɑ.ˈhe.ɦɛ.ɦʊ]
上海閒話 or 上海闲话
[zɑ.ˈhe.ɲɪɲ]
上海人
[ŋu]
我
Translation
we or I
IPA
[ŋu.ɲi] or [ɐˑ.lɐʔ]
Chinese character
我伲、阿拉（我拉）
he/she
[ɦi]
渠（伊, 其）
they
[ɦi.la]
渠拉（伊拉）
you (sing.)
[noŋ]
侬（儂）
you (plural)
[na]
㑚
hello
[noŋ hɔ]
侬好（儂好）
good-bye
sorry
[ˈtse.ɦue]
再会（再會）
[ʑ̻iaja noŋ] or [ʑ̻iaʑ̻ia
谢谢侬（謝謝儂）
noŋ]
[te.vəˑ.tɕʰi]
对勿起（對勿起）
but, however
[dɛ.zɨ], [dɛ.zɨ.ni]
但是, 但是呢
please
[tɕʰɪɲ]
请（請）
that one
[ˈe.tsɐʔ], [i.tsɐʔ]
哎只, 伊只
this one
[ɡəʔ.tsɐʔ]
搿只
there
[ˈe.tɐʔ], [i.tɐʔ]
哎垯, 伊垯
over there
[ˈe.mi.tɐʔ], [i.mi.tɐʔ] 哎面垯, 伊面垯
here
[ɡəˑ.tɐʔ]
搿垯（箇垯）
to have
[ɦiɤɯ.təʔ]
有得
thank you
to exist, here, present [lɐˑ.he]
勒許
now, current
[ɦi.ze]
现在（現在）
what time is it?
[ɦi.ze tɕi.ti tsoŋ]
搿息几点钟？（搿息幾點鐘?）
where
[ɦa.ɺi.tɐʔ], [sa.di.fɑ] 嚡里垯（嚡裏垯）, 啥地方
what
[sa ɦəʔ]
who
[sa.ɲɪɲ] or [ɦa.ɺi.ɦue] 啥人, 嚡里位
why
[ɦue.sa]
为啥（為啥）
when
[sa.zəɲ.kuɑ]
啥辰光
how
[na.nəɲ, na.nəɲ.ka]
哪恁, 哪恁介
how much?
[tɕi.di]
几钿?几块洋钿?（幾鈿?幾塊銀頭?）
yes
telephone number
[ˈe]
哎
[m̩], [vəˑ.zɨ], [m̩məʔ],
呒, 弗是, 呒没
[viɔ]
[di.ɦʊ ɦɔ.dɤɯ]
电话号头（電話號頭）
home
[oˑ.ɺi.ɕiã]
屋里向（屋裏向）
Come to our house
and play.
[tɔ ɐˑ.lɐʔ oˑ.ɺi.ɕiɑ le
bəˑ.ɕiã]
到阿拉屋里厢来孛相（白相）！（到
阿拉屋裏厢來孛相!）
Where's the
restroom?
[da.sɤɯ.kɛ ɺəˑ.ɺɐʔ
ɦa.ɺi.tɐʔ]
汏手间勒勒嚡里垯?（汏手間勒勒嚡
no
啥个, 做啥
Translation
IPA
Chinese character
裏垯?）
Have you eaten
dinner?
[ɦia.vɛ tɕʰɪˑ.ku.ləʔ
va]
I don't know
Do you speak
English?
[ŋɯ; vəˑ.ɕiɔ.təʔ]
[noŋ ˈɪn.vəɲ kãtəʔle
va]
我弗(勿)晓得.（我弗(勿)曉得.）
I love you
[ŋɯ; e noŋ]
我爱侬！（我愛儂!）
I adore you
[ŋɯ; e.mɯ noŋ]
我爱慕侬.（我愛慕儂!）
I like you a lot
[ŋɯ; ɺɔ ˈhuø.ɕi noŋ
ɦəʔ]
我老欢喜侬搿！（我老歡喜儂搿）
news
[ɕɪɲ.vəɲ]
新闻（新聞）
dead
[ɕi.tʰəˑ.ləʔ]
死脱了
alive
[ɦuəˑ.lɐˑ.he]
活勒嗨（活着）
a lot
[ˈtɕiɔ.kue]
交关（邪气）
inside, within
[ɺi.ɕiã]
里向
outside
[ŋa.dɤɯ]
外頭
How are you?
[noŋ hɔ va]
侬好伐？（儂好伐？）
夜饭吃过了𠲎?（夜飯吃過了𠲎?）
侬英文讲得来𠲎?
[edit] Writing
Dr. T. P. Crawford invented a set of symbols which at one time seemed likely,
in Shanghai, to supplant every other system of phonetic representation; but
although books were printed in it, the system has gone completely out of use.
The system of Mr. Murray, of Peking, said to be remarkably simple, and
"likely to supplant all other systems," is yet in its infancy. At present, some
system of Romanization seems to be the only thing that will satisfy the needs
of most students of the languages of China.
[24][25]
While Romanization has proved very useful in educational work among the
Chinese, there is need of a supplementary system similar to the short-hand
systems of the West. The writer, impressed with the simplicity of the sounds
in the Shanghai dialect, has given some of his odd moments to the formation
of a system of phonography, which seems to him exceedingly simple, and
much more easy to acquire than any system used by English stenographers.
The absence of complicated consonantal endings in Chinese syllables, and the
well known fact that each syllable can readily be divided into two parts—an
iuitial and a final, makes the problem of stenographic writing comparatively
simple. Although the system exhibited is prepared for use in Shanghai only, it
will need little modification for other dialects
[26][27]
Chinese characters are used to write Shanghainese. Romanization of Shanghainese
was first developed by Protestant English and American Christian missionaries in the
19th century, such as Joseph Edkins. Usage of this romanization system was mainly
confined to translated bibles for use by native Shanghainese, or EnglishShanghainese dictionaries, some of which also contained characters, for foreign
missionaries to learn Shanghainese.
The "Shanghai Phonetic Symbols" were created and put into a chart.[28][29]
Shanghainese is sometimes written informally using homonyms. For example,
ningmeng 'lemon', written 檸檬 in Standard Chinese, may be written 人門 (persondoor), and wang 'yellow' may be written 王 (king) rather than standard 黃. These are
not homonyms in Mandarin, but are specifically Shanghainese.[30]
[edit] Origin of Mandarin Words
Many Mandarin words originally of foreign origin come from dialects which
borrowed them from the original foreign language. The Mandarin word "lasi ka" (拉
斯卡), meaning "Last Car", originated from Shanghainese.[31][32]