What is the oldest spoken Chinese language?

Written Language. The Chinese language is the oldest written language in the world with at least six thousand years of history. Chinese character inscriptions have been found in turtle shells dating back to the Shang dynasty1 (1766-1123 BC) proving the written language has existed for more than 3,000 years.

Is classical Chinese closer to Mandarin or Cantonese?

Mandarin – now known as Putonghua [the common language] – was then a northern dialect spoken by the hated Manchurian officials. ‘Cantonese is closer to classical Chinese in its pronunciation and some grammar,’ Jiang Wenxian, a Chinese language scholar, said.

When was old Chinese spoken?

Old Chinese, sometimes known as “Archaic Chinese”, was the common language during the early and middle Zhou Dynasty (11th to 7th centuries B.C.), whose texts include inscriptions on bronze artifacts, the poetry of the “Shijing”, the history of the “Shujing”, and portions of the Yijing.

Do people still speak ancient Chinese?

The original Chinese writing system of the Shang dynasty is currently in use, making it one of the oldest continually-used languages in history. With a standardized writing system for all official documents and communication, unification of the mutually unintelligible spoken dialects was possible.

Can Chinese speakers understand classical Chinese?

However, even with knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, Classical Chinese can be difficult to understand by native speakers of modern Chinese, because of its heavy use of literary references and allusions as well as its extremely abbreviated style.

Which Chinese dialect is closest to Old Chinese?

The reason for such a huge difference is that, Hokkien is a much older language, older than Cantonese. It might have descended directly from old Chinese. Linguists say that, more than two thousand years ago, during the Qin Dynasty, the Han people in the north started to migrate to Fujian due to the war.

Which dialect is closest to Old Chinese?

The oldest Chinese dialect, Hokkien

• For me, while I can find plenty similarities between Cantonese and Mandarin, I find none between Hokkien and Mandarin.
• The reason for such a huge difference is that, Hokkien is a much older language, older than Cantonese.
• Hokkien is called Fujianhua (福建话) in Mandarin.

What language is spoken in Guangdong?

Cantonese

Cantonese
Region	Pearl River Delta of Guangdong, eastern Guangxi
Language family	Sino-Tibetan Sinitic Yue Yuehai Cantonese
Dialects	Guangzhou Xiguan Hong Kong Malaysian
Writing system	Written Cantonese Cantonese Braille Written Chinese

What is Classical Chinese?

Classical Chinese ( wenyan 文言 or gudai Hanyu 古代漢語 “old Chinese”) is the written language that took form during the late Warring States period 戰國 (5th cent.-221 BCE) and was in use as a written language to the beginning of the 20th century. Many traces of the classical language can still be seen in modern written Chinese.

How did the vernacular language change the classical style of Chinese?

The written Classical Chinese already showed differences to the everyday spoken language during the 4th and 5th centuries. The influence of the vernacular language changed the originary classical style of Chinese in both lexicon and in grammar.

What was the first language spoken in China?

Ancient China languages first and earliest evidence came in the form of an inscription on an oracle bone. This is stated to have belonged to the ancient Shang state of China in about 1200 BC. Though deciphering the language was almost impossible, this was nowhere close to the Chinese people speak today.

What is the writing system of ancient China?

Writing system. Classical Chinese, also known as Literary Chinese, is the language of the classic literature from the end of the Spring and Autumn period through to the end of the Han Dynasty, a written form of Old Chinese.