What languages do you speak?

English (native/fluent), Cantonese (native/fluent), Chinese Mandarin (intermediate), Japanese (advanced).

Did some Welsh and French at GCSE....

What languages do you speak and how good are you?

For all Chinese Mandarin speakers out there, just HOW GOOD is this guy?

He's English or American, about 20 or younger, and is seemingly FLUENT and PERFECT in Mandarin Chinese.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P4vB346GfM&feature=related (if that doesn't seem impressive enough, watch the video below)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?src_vid=0P4vB346GfM&v=WDHIhnvq3_w&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_919855 (he appears at 0.50)

The guy even goes on stage to do traditional stand up Chinese comedy sketch in front of hundreds of people!

Total Respect.

Given you're a native English speaker, can you write Chinese (either traditional or simplified)?

Just so you know I am a british-born cantonese. I can write both traditional and simplified but personally I prefer writing in traditional just because I think it looks more expressive.

How did that come about (writing Chinese)? I suppose you attend Saturday school?

Did you know apart from the two systems (traditional and simplified), it is (sort of) possible to write Cantonese?

I mean simple words like tired (gwui) can be written but normally the formal word (pei goon) us used instead?

Also, reading subtitles in Hong Kong films tend to be meaningless to those who don't speak Cantonese, despite being able to read and write Chinese because Cantonese is effectively another language?

Well I use attend a saturday cantonese school when I was younger and my parents taught me as well, but when I started comprehensive I stopped going and instead was partially self taught. Later about year 10 in comprehensive I started to regret not going to a cantonese school and was thinking of doing it again but where I live the cantonese schools died out the last cantonese school was officially closed, however time past and they were replaced by mandarin schools so I attended them instead but this was a short term course. At the moment I do not attend any cantonese or mandarin classes so I can focus on my A-levels.



Yes. LOl



Well I haven't really ever watched any Hong Kong films. But I have travelled to Hong Kong alot, television there have some channels that uses mandarin subtitles on cantonese spoken channels and vice-versa. Both mandarin and cantonese languages are used in Hong Kong so it doesn't really matter if you don't understand one of them (a good example of this are train stations calling for next stops, i remember they call out cantonese, mandarin and english). Also nowadays most people (mostly young generation and public sector workers) in Hong Kong speak both. And yes cantonese is effectively another language.