Quote:
Originally Posted by chris.p
There are two forms of Chinese language, aren't there? Which is the 'national' one - which is used in Hong Kong - which in other places like Singapore.
When courses say 'learn Chinese', do they mean Mandarin or Cantonese?
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In general,
Mandarin refers to Standard Chinese (aka Standard Mandarin), or in a simple term, Chinese, which is the official language of mainland China, Taiwan, and one of the official languages of Singapore.
The so-called "two forms of Chinese language" refers to Chinese written language in two forms, the simplified and traditional Chinese characters. Simplified Chinese characters are standard in mainland China, Singapore, and Malaysia. Traditional Chinese characters are retained in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau.
When courses say 'learn Chinese', they mean Mandarin. Cantonese is just a dialect which is popular in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau.