Gripping Facts on Asian Languages

Hi there!

In the previous post, I tried to cover the main differences between Chinese, Japanese and Korean (I hope this helped you), and today we continue to talk about these languages. I've prepared for you the most interesting facts about them that will either blow your mind or convince you to start learning the language yourself! Grab Coca-Cola, and some sweets, settle down in your comfiest chair, and let's start😉!

Chinese

1) "Mandarin" origin

The English word "Mandarin" originally referred to an official of the Chinese empire. It comes from the Portuguese word mandarim, which is derived from the Malay word menteri, which in turn originates from the Sanskrit word mantrin, which means "minister". Among Chinese speakers, Mandarin Chinese is often called Guóyǔ (国语), which means "national language", or Pǔtōnghuà (普通话), which means "common speech".

2) Chinese as a Second Language

Chinese is the new English! The language has become the most popular foreign language in the West today. Mark Zuckerberg, Malia Obama, former president of South Korea Park Geun-hye, former Australian Prime minister Kevin Rudd and professional wrestler John Cena, have all studied Chinese. Do you want to emulate their success?😏

3) Two Sets of Chinese Characters.

Chinese characters are classified according to two groups: the first is Simplified and the second is Traditional. Simplified characters are more modern versions curated in the mid-20th century during Mao Zedong’s time. Traditional characters were used in ancient times.

4) Simple Grammar

Articles ("a", "an", and "the"), masculine, feminine, or neuter words, verb changes with tense and person and plurals are not found where Chinese characters are used😃. It makes the language much easier to pick up, but also means mastering English is tricky for Chinese users...

5) No Word to Say "yes"

How to say "yes" in Chinese isn't straightforward. Standard Mandarin replies use the verb or adjective in the question for assent:

• "Can you help me?" - "Can."
• "Is it clear?" - "Clear."

6) Number Symbols

The Chinese number system is one of the most logical systems in the world. Every number in Chinese has a specific signal that can be described using only one hand.

7) Digital Codes

Chinese youth use digital codes to communicate online. With the help of a set of numbers, a special communication system with frequently used phrases was developed. For example, 520 - "I love you", 065 - "I'm sorry."

8) The Most Complicated Chinese Character

Out of more than 50,000 characters in the Chinese language, "biang" is the most difficult. It’s an unofficial Chinese character with 57 strokes and has to be written twice😵! Biang copies the sound of noodles smacking against the chef's table.

9) Brain Peculiarity

Science has proven that Chinese speakers use both temporal lobes of the brain at the same time😮.

Korean 

1) North and South Korean are Different

Due to the extensive time that the two countries have been separate, the North and South Korean languages have evolved to have distinct vocabularies, pronunciations, and even grammatical rules.

2) Seoul as"capital city"

In Korean, Seoul simply means "capital city" - quite a literal name for the city!

3) No Grammatical Gender

Another nice thing about the Korean language is that it has no grammatical gender. Despite this, some words that categorize people based on their gender, much like in a lot of other languages. If a term or title refers to a female person, the prefix 여 (yeo) is added before it, and if it refers to a male person, the prefix 남 (nam) is added instead. But don't worry if you can't tell whether a Korean noun is male or female - chances are, it doesn't have a gender at all! 

4) Seven Levels of Respect

Like Japanese, Korean has a complex system of honorifics, which involves different verb endings and vocabulary depending on the relationship you have with the person you are addressing. In North Korea, the highest honorific form is reserved especially for the most lauded person - Great Leader, who has his own verb ending, 옵 (op).

5) Two Counting Systems

In Korean, small and large numbers use different vocabulary. One counting system uses native Korean vocabulary and is used for saying your age, counting objects, and expressing the hour when telling time. This system goes up to 99. The other system is of Chinese origin and is used for expressing the minutes when telling time, as well as several other measurements such as distance, money, and dates. It’s also used for numbers above 99.

6) A Collectivist Language

Because Korean culture has been largely influenced by Confucius, many Koreans believe that the greater good of the group takes over one's own desires. This is why in many situations where English speakers would typically use I or my, Korean speakers would use 우리 (uri), the Korean word for ‘we’ or 'us' or 'ours'. They do this to express something shared by a group or community, or simply to express a sense of belonging and closeness.

7) K-Pop and K-Dramas

Over the past decade or so, there has been a marked increase in the popularity of Korean pop music (K-Pop) and K-Dramas around the world😍. I'll hit the nail on the head if say that this is what led to a growing interest in learning the Korean language. Firstly because they provide a dazzling way to learn about Korean culture and pick up some basic language skills. Secondly, the rise of social media means that it is easier than ever to connect with Korean speakers and learn from them directly. Finally, more and more people are realizing that knowing Korean can be a valuable asset in an increasingly globalized world.

Japanese 

1) "Land of the Rising Sun"

The word "Japan" is foreign - Japanese people call their countryにほん (Nihon) or  にっぽん (Nippon), which roughly translates to "Land of the Rising Sun".

2) Almost 10% of Internet Users Speak Japanese

Japanese is the 9th most-spoken language worldwide, but it’s the third-largest language on the Internet, behind English and Spanish😎. Even though Japanese speakers represent less than 2% of the world population, they make up almost 10% of Internet users.

3) Fastest Spoken Language in the World

A study by the University of Lyon concluded that Japanese is the fastest-spoken language worldwide, with an average rate of 7.84 syllables per second. In comparison, English only clocks 6.19 syllables per second. Vice versa, the study determined that Japanese has a relatively low information density rate at 0.49, as compared to 0.91 for English.

4) No Plurals and Articles

The Japanese language does not have a plural form. But they have counters to explain if it is a lot such as "たくさん" (takusan) - A lot or "さまざま" (samazama) –-Various. Despite whether it's singular or plural, the form of the word does not change.

Japanese also doesn't differentiate between 'a', 'an', and 'the'. While this doesn't cause so many problems for English speakers of Japanese, it's a language point that's tricky for Japanese speakers of English.

5) Different Ways of Saying "I"

In English, you refer to yourself as "I". But in Japanese, there are many more ways to refer to yourself. Other than 私 (watashi), there are 僕 (boku), 俺 (ore), 俺様 (oresama), 自分 (jibun) and 拙者 (sessha). So you'll need to bite the bullet and learn them all 😥

6) The Months Have no Name

They are indicated using the moon kanji月, which also means "month", in front of which is the number corresponding to the order of the 12 months of the year. However, the official calendar used is the same, so January is the first month of the year. (Chinese uses the same system)

7) The Names of the Days 

The names of the days in Japanese come from the 7 seven mobile stars known during Antiquity, namely in the order Monday to Sunday: the Sun, the Moon, Mars (kanji of fire), Mercury (kanji of the water), Jupiter (wood kanji), Venus (metal kanji) and Saturn (earth kanji).

8) Japanese Year

In Japanese, the year is transcribed in two different ways: either the year of the Gregorian calendar; or the year included in an era, corresponding to the reign of an emperor. For example, 2018 was the 30th year of the Heisei era.

Have a nice day 💗

P.S. I registered on Korean lessons yesterday😄*in anticipation of pleasant experiences*