Dialect Neglect
To some people, I'm a linguistic "banana" - Yellow on the outside and White on the inside. (Actually "goreng pisang" would be more appropriate cos I'm so tanned!!)
Well, the reason they think so is because of my terrible command of the Chinese language. I'm a fella who on the outside looks like he can speak Chinese; but can only speak English with a little half baked Chinese. Hence the yellow outside, white inside analogy.
Having realised this, I started questioning if I was indeed a true "banana". I started examining all aspects of my life to find shreds of evidence to prove that on the inside I'm still yellow.
After much searching, I guess the most conclusive evidence I've found is my ability to speak dialect. I don't claim to be really good at speaking dialect, but I think I've got mastery of at least 1.25 dialects. Let me explain the numbers.
I'm probably half proficient at speaking Hokkien. I consider my Hokkien "puah tang zui" (half pail of water). And my Teochew is probably "sah su ku tang zui" (three-quater pail of water). So doing the maths... yep I've got command of 5/4 dialects.
Some say that dialect can't really take the place of Chinese and I don't disagree. However, I think dialect is something we shouldn't just ignore and let it fade away with time. Aside from using dialect to communicate with the older generation, there are lots of other occasions we can use dialect to add flavour and variety into our daily lives.
For example, wouldn't it be much more fun to order Teochew porridge items in actual Teochew? "Auntie, sah kor tau pok. Heh bee hiam. Lou bak. Chye pou ngn. Muay nor uah." (Auntie, 3 pieces of beancurd. Fried spicy shrimp.... Two bowls of porridge) I think it sure beats just pointing to the different dishes and going "this one... this one... this one...".
That said, I'm gonna try and practise my Teochew as much as I can. I guess it helps that I live in a predominantly Teochew area and there are ample opportunities for me to use my "sah su ku tang zui". Hopefully, I will soon be "jit tang muah muah"(one pail full) or close.
As for my "banana-ness". I think I've found sufficient reason to lose that tag. At least I'm satisfied.
Well, the reason they think so is because of my terrible command of the Chinese language. I'm a fella who on the outside looks like he can speak Chinese; but can only speak English with a little half baked Chinese. Hence the yellow outside, white inside analogy.
Having realised this, I started questioning if I was indeed a true "banana". I started examining all aspects of my life to find shreds of evidence to prove that on the inside I'm still yellow.
After much searching, I guess the most conclusive evidence I've found is my ability to speak dialect. I don't claim to be really good at speaking dialect, but I think I've got mastery of at least 1.25 dialects. Let me explain the numbers.
I'm probably half proficient at speaking Hokkien. I consider my Hokkien "puah tang zui" (half pail of water). And my Teochew is probably "sah su ku tang zui" (three-quater pail of water). So doing the maths... yep I've got command of 5/4 dialects.
Some say that dialect can't really take the place of Chinese and I don't disagree. However, I think dialect is something we shouldn't just ignore and let it fade away with time. Aside from using dialect to communicate with the older generation, there are lots of other occasions we can use dialect to add flavour and variety into our daily lives.
For example, wouldn't it be much more fun to order Teochew porridge items in actual Teochew? "Auntie, sah kor tau pok. Heh bee hiam. Lou bak. Chye pou ngn. Muay nor uah." (Auntie, 3 pieces of beancurd. Fried spicy shrimp.... Two bowls of porridge) I think it sure beats just pointing to the different dishes and going "this one... this one... this one...".
That said, I'm gonna try and practise my Teochew as much as I can. I guess it helps that I live in a predominantly Teochew area and there are ample opportunities for me to use my "sah su ku tang zui". Hopefully, I will soon be "jit tang muah muah"(one pail full) or close.
As for my "banana-ness". I think I've found sufficient reason to lose that tag. At least I'm satisfied.
posted by Vorlacks at 5:54:00 pm
2 Comments:
yes!!! ordering teochew food in teochew gives me a sense of satisfaction... and the stallholders tend to treat you better ;)
yeah bro! i think they actually give me a little more. might also be becos they think "aiyah, pui eh! jia you zhoi!" (aiyah, fatty! eat more)
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