When it comes to Chinese, most people usually remember that it is also considered the most common in the world. However, these are not the only features of this unusual and very interesting language, the importance of which in the world, as China develops and the influence of this country on the world economy grows.
1. Chinese is believed to be spoken by about 1.4 billion people. Most of them live in China, Taiwan and Singapore. Plus, many Chinese communities can be found all over the world; they are on all continents. At the same time, most Chinese communities in North America, Western Europe, Asia and Australia. There are very few of them in South America and practically none in Africa and Eastern Europe(except for Russia, where the number of Chinese is all last years is increasing at a very rapid rate).
2. Chinese is considered one of the most ancient languages. Samples of Chinese writing dating back to the 14th century BC have also reached us. These inscriptions were made on animal bones and were most likely used for fortune telling.
3. Chinese language is different big amount dialects, which are divided into 10 (according to other sources - 12) dialect groups. Moreover, the differences between dialects are sometimes so great that residents of one province of China are not able to understand residents of another. At the same time, the main differences between dialects are phonetic and lexical, while grammatical differences are not so noticeable. Interestingly, there is a theory according to which Chinese cannot be called common language. According to some linguists, it is actually a family of languages that are mistakenly classified as separate dialects.
4. The standard Chinese language used by speakers of different dialects when communicating with each other is Putonghua ( pǔtōnghuà), based on the norms of the Beijing dialect. IN Western countries it is called "Mandarin" ( standard mandarin). Putonghua is the official language of the People's Republic of China and is used by the media. In Taiwan official language- this is “goyu” ( guóyǔ), and in Singapore - "huayuy" ( huáyǔ). However, the difference between these three languages is small; their speakers understand each other perfectly.
5. Another thing the Chinese language is famous for is its hieroglyphs. It is believed that there are about 100 thousand of them. However, many of them are almost never used today and are found exclusively in ancient literature. Knowledge of 8-10 thousand hieroglyphs is more than enough to read almost any modern texts, specialized newspapers and magazines. For everyday life, knowledge of 500-1000 high-frequency hieroglyphs is quite enough. It is believed that this number is quite enough to parse most everyday texts.
6. At the same time, many hieroglyphs are extremely similar to each other, sometimes differing only by one line. And all because in their formation the same bases, called radicals, are used. At the same time, it often happens that different words are indicated by the same hieroglyphs, the meaning of which in such cases must be understood from the context. And sometimes the absence of one dash can change the meaning of a hieroglyph to the exact opposite.
7. One hieroglyph always writes one syllable. Moreover, it almost always represents one morpheme. For example, for greetings, a record of two hieroglyphs is used, which read as “Ni hao” and literally mean “You are good.” The vast majority Chinese surnames are written in one hieroglyph and consist of one syllable.
8. Chinese is a tonal language. For each vowel there can be five pronunciation options at once: neutral, high level, mid-rising, outgoing-rising and high falling ( a, ā, á, ǎ, à). The untrained ear is sometimes simply unable to discern the difference between them. But a slight change in tone can completely change the meaning of a word. It is not surprising that among Chinese speakers there are many people with an excellent ear for music. After all, they unconsciously develop such a feature in themselves from childhood.
9. Since 1958, China began to use a syllabary alphabet written in symbols Latin alphabet- pinyin ( pinyin), literally "phonetic writing". Thanks to her, it became possible to write down Chinese characters Latin transcription. The tones are transmitted superscripts. In some cases, Pinyin entries look quite original. For example, “mā mà mǎ ma”, which translates as “is mother scolding the horse?” This example, by the way, perfectly demonstrates the importance of tonality in the Chinese language. The hieroglyphic version of this entry looks like 妈骂马吗.
10. At the same time, the Chinese language has extremely simple grammar. Verbs are not conjugated, there are no genders, even the concept that is familiar to us plural not here. Punctuation is present only at the most primitive level, and phrases are constructed strictly according to certain structures. If it were not for the crazy pronunciation and the huge number of hieroglyphs, then Chinese would be one of the. But it didn’t work out.
11. Those who study Chinese often have to deal with unusual constructions that are not found in other languages. For example, there are no words “yes” and “no”. Answering questions requires using others grammatical structures. The need to use special signs indicating quantity is also unusual. For example, in order to say “six apples,” you need to put the “个” symbol between the number and the name of the item, which is used to indicate quantity. There are about 240 similar special signs in the language.
12. Chinese is well suited for all kinds of puns, which are used willingly and very often by native speakers. And hieroglyphic writing can look exceptionally beautiful. It is not surprising that Europeans often use them to decorate interiors, usually without completely understanding the meaning of what is written.
Chinese hieroglyph is one of the most interesting, mysterious and amazing forms of writing in the world. Each hieroglyph is a unique design that has its own individual origin, meaning and history.
The history of the Chinese character
Scientists still disagree on when the first Chinese character appeared. There is information that perhaps the first Chinese writing arose during the Yin dynasty, and this was in 1401-1122 BC. Although there are also references to the hieroglyph in literature that is more than four thousand years old.
Chinese characters
Chinese writing very ancient and unique thanks to its hieroglyphs, the Chinese even like to say that the hieroglyphs reflect the unity of heaven and man. The Chinese picked out the very first hieroglyphs on the shells of turtles or the bones of killed animals. Subsequently, hieroglyphs could be found on bronze and steel utensils or weapons, as well as in ancient books.
As civilization developed, writing itself also developed. The hieroglyph became the beginning of such an art form as calligraphy, where every person can feel like a creator and artist who draws a hieroglyph to his own taste and in his own unique style. At the same time, the hieroglyph is written according to clear, strict rules, which must not be violated under any circumstances.
I'll give an example to make it more clear. Parts of the hieroglyph must be written only from left to right and from top to bottom, the hieroglyph must be placed in a square of a certain size, first all the horizontal features are written, and only then the vertical and many other nuances that must be known and taken into account when writing each hieroglyph.
Chinese calligraphy is actually not just a type of writing, it is an art that does not just help people write important information, but also causes emotional uplift, feelings and inspiration.
In the distant past, a hieroglyph written using calligraphy was valued as a work of art. Rich Chinese collected such masterpieces in collections, which made them famous and recognized as people with good taste. Hieroglyphs, decorated using calligraphy, were placed in frames and placed in offices, halls, and were also used on signs of various establishments and shops.
By practicing an art such as Chinese calligraphy, you can cultivate such valuable qualities like perseverance, patience and perseverance.
Meaning and meaning of Chinese characters
Each Chinese character has its own specific meaning and represents a morpheme or syllable. Scientists were able
Hieroglyph "strength"
Just to roughly calculate the number of existing hieroglyphs, their number was about eighty thousand. However, in modern world much fewer hieroglyphs are used. For example, in order to read a Chinese newspaper or other printed edition It is enough to master only three thousand hieroglyphs.
Each Chinese character can represent either a separate syllable or a full-fledged whole word. Many of the words are made up of one or two syllables. This point is important to consider when working with a dictionary.
The easiest way to find out what a particular hieroglyph means, find out its meaning and even pronunciation is to use electronic translators. By the way, there are also dictionaries in which you can draw the desired hieroglyph in a special window. The program will determine what kind of hieroglyph it is and display its meaning. The main thing is to adhere to the rules for writing hieroglyphs (draw from left to right and from top to bottom). You also cannot take your hand away from writing out the element until the hieroglyph is completed.
Of course, the meaning of hieroglyphs can be found in ordinary paper dictionaries, but you need to know how to do it correctly. This is not exactly a simple matter. Each publication has its own search features. For example, there is a so-called search by key, when the search for the desired hieroglyph is carried out using the main element. Typically, this element is the top element on the left. It is necessary to count the number of dashes in a given key and find the corresponding one in the list, which is located at the end of the dictionary. On the page indicated in this list, you can find the hieroglyph you need.
Components of Chinese characters
Chinese characters and their writing have virtually nothing to do with the language itself. They need to be understood on some intuitive level. The study of hieroglyphs begins with the study of the simplest components.
Each hieroglyph is made up of a certain number of graphic symbols (there are about 200 types). Typically, each of these symbols does not carry any meaning. There is also such a thing as a grapheme - a combination of hieroglyphs that are written according to a certain sequence. Such graphemes can be used as a separate hieroglyph that carries a semantic load, or they can be a component of another complex hieroglyph.
I won’t delve too deeply into the process of hieroglyph formation. Just want to list some basic graphic symbols, from which hieroglyphs are obtained:
- vertical line;
- rising bar;
- broken line;
- hook.
It is from these and many other simple symbols that complex and beautiful hieroglyphs are formed.
Many Chinese sages they compared hieroglyphs with life, because some of them grow old or are forgotten, others appear that replace the “dead” ones, this has been and will continue.
You can, of course, study Chinese and master the rules of writing hieroglyphs at home, but no one can teach you this better than Chinese teachers. Therefore, we invite you to study in China! Ask your questions in the form that will appear after clicking this button.
Chinese language is considered one of the most popular languages all over the world. Since ancient times of human existence, this language has been classified as complex languages. This is because the language has remained unchanged over time. If you nevertheless decide to take up the study of such an exotic and unusual language, then this article will reveal some interesting facts about the Chinese language.
What is special about the Chinese language?
As we all already know, every language has its own characteristics and Chinese is no exception. No one will argue that this language is quite interesting and unique. Here are some of its characteristic properties:
- Phonetic system. It consists of a complex of vowels and consonants and four syllable tones. Much depends on intonation, since most words are the same in spelling, but, depending on intonation and pronunciation, they have different meanings. Quite often this discourages people who want to learn Chinese .
- Hieroglyphs and writing. A hieroglyph is a syllable, and words can consist of several syllables or one. The most common option are disyllabic words, that is, words consisting of a pair of hieroglyphs. An interesting fact is that many Chinese surnames consist of only one character. IN general case hieroglyphs have about forty thousand characters. But don’t be afraid - in order to understand and communicate with native Chinese speakers, it is enough to know about two thousand characters. When learning Chinese you will encounter complete absence declensions, genders and cases, as well as with the same construction of sentences or phrases.
- Punctuation. Thanks to hieroglyphics in China there are absolutely no punctuation marks. This will significantly speed up your language learning time.
- Dialectal and regional differences. There are seven dialects in China. As a rule, people belonging to different groups of dialects do not quite understand each other when communicating.
The solution in this situation is the national language Putonghua. Putonghua is a language that unites people from different groups dialects. If you decide to learn Chinese, then Putonghua is exactly what you need. With its help, you will be able to communicate freely, as well as read and write without any difficulty.
The most memorable facts about the Chinese language.
Chinese language has always been considered the most interesting language all over the world, about which there are a variety of legends and secrets. Let's look at some of them:
- There are no Chinese keyboards. Words are entered using pinyon - just type the word in Latin and select the hieroglyph you need using a certain number;
- As the most difficult language in the world, Chinese is listed in the Guinness Book of Records;
- Chinese is one of the six UN languages;
- It is not customary in China to answer “yes” or “no” to these questions. For example, to the question “Do you love me?”, the Chinese answer “I love” or “I don’t love”;
- thanks to the fact that the carriers of this language Since childhood we have been accustomed to distinguishing tones; the Chinese have absolute pitch;
- one of the residents of China filed a lawsuit against the creators of the famous Chinese dictionary, since I found more than four thousand errors in it;
- today in various countries exists a large number of Chinese language centers, which indicates that the Chinese language is respected language worldwide.
Based on the above, it is not difficult to notice that the Chinese language is significantly different from other languages of the world that everyone is accustomed to encounter. Manifold amazing facts makes Chinese language attractive and interesting.
For several decades now, tattoos with Japanese and Chinese characters popular. They attract people with their hidden meaning, secret of antiquity and magical meanings. Hieroglyphs are classified as inscription tattoos, but due to the peculiarities of the language, they look more like a drawing.
Traditional Chinese writing
Hanzi - traditional Chinese script, officially used in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and even outside the country. There are about 47 thousand hieroglyphs in this language, but not all are used. To write correctly, you need to know about four thousand characters.
Many Chinese words made up of several hieroglyphs, where one character means one syllable. In addition to traditional Chinese writing, there is also a simplified one, which was invented to improve literacy in the country. In simplified writing, characters have fewer strokes than in traditional writing; such writing is used in China, Singapore and Malaysia.
Chinese characters are considered the most ancient compared to others; they are used in Chinese, as well as in Korean and Japanese. Until 1945, this script was used even in Vietnam.
No one knows how many hieroglyphs exist (it is assumed that about 50 thousand), since their number and type are constantly changing.
Around the world, about a thousand different hieroglyphs are used every day. This amount is enough for approximately 93% of printed material.
Writing hieroglyphs
The Chinese consider it normal to know two thousand characters. The spelling of a hieroglyph depends on its designation, for example, 一 is read as and, its meaning is one. The hieroglyph containing the most lines is made up of three characters - 龍, translated as “dragon” and pronounced “lun”.
Chinese writing retains its form throughout the country and is independent of dialect. If you need to communicate something and you write a message on paper, then a Chinese person from any province will understand you.
Keys in Chinese characters are called graphic components. Separately, they are simple signs and help to classify the hieroglyph as a separate topic. For example, the key 人 can have different meanings in different characters:
- By itself it is translated as “man”;
- In the hieroglyph, 亾 means death;
- In the sign 亿 it takes on the meaning “many”, “one hundred million”;
- In the hieroglyph 仂 it is translated as “remnant”;
- The character 仔 with this sign means “child”.
Tattoos can also be complex, telling a story. So the client can imprint on his body a small story that has meaning for him great importance. Most often the inscriptions are in Chinese and Japanese, but there are also Korean and Vietnamese characters.
Many people get tattoos as a talisman, considering them part of ancient culture China and Japan. Such tattoos do not pose any difficulty for artists, since they have small size(most often no more than the palm of your hand).
Often people choose simple hieroglyphs that mean one word. Artists also make tattoos denoting a phrase. You can pin both a proverb and your own phrase.
Most tattoos are filled with black ink, sometimes red or white are used. It happens that hieroglyphs serve as an addition to a large tattoo - for example, a dragon.
Examples of hieroglyphs with translation
Tattoo parlors offer every client standard set hieroglyphs. Most often, these symbols are used as talisman tattoos.
Happiness
According to the Chinese, happiness depends on the protection of Heaven and the Gods. The tattoo is aimed at good luck, happiness and luck in any area.
Great happiness
This tattoo is considered a very powerful talisman. Many believe that she grants wishes. It is best to use it to attract happiness in a relationship with your significant other.
Love
Helps attract happy love. Helps to make love mutual, attract a life partner and gives happiness and tranquility.
Eternal love
Also used as a talisman, it represents “love to the grave”, mutual understanding, support, sincere and happy love. Keeps fiery love forever and supports the feelings of two people.
Luck
Great idea for a talisman tattoo. Preserves luck and increases it, gives luck.
Wealth
Helps create the right atmosphere to attract wealth and prosperity in the right area. Provides both material and spiritual wealth. Brings both money and good luck. It is a good amulet.
Money
The most common tattoo option. Helps in attracting wealth and money. If this sign is placed indoors, it also attracts wealth. It looks like a hieroglyph for wealth, but it attracts only money, prosperity and good luck in such matters.
Prosperity
Helps with promotion issues career ladder, regulates failures in life. Used to attract good luck in the desired field of activity. It is considered not only a talisman, but also a talisman.
Abundance
Brings wealth to the home of the tattoo bearer, both monetary and moral. Similar to the hieroglyph of prosperity, it attracts good luck to the desired field of activity.
Improves health and increases life expectancy. It is considered a talisman and protects against death at a young age.
Force
Increases physical and spiritual strength, hardens moral basis, helps the owner deal with problems more efficiently and quickly. Suitable for exemplary family men.
Joy
Used to achieve inner harmony, attracting and maintaining a good mood.
Health
Helps in solving health problems, restores physical and mental strength. Extends life and its quality.
World
Has the meaning great responsibility, authorities. Can be used for tattooing due to some personal beliefs.
beauty
It is considered a talisman for attracting beauty and maintains external and internal attractiveness.
Makes the owner of the tattoo more courageous and courageous, helps to cope with difficulties.
Independence
Represents freedom of action and the desire to do things your own way. Helps get rid of bad habits or classes.
Courage
Characterizes the owner of the tattoo as strong and strong-willed person and helps maintain this quality.
Dream
Represents sublimity, inspiration, promotes the fulfillment of desires.
Fulfillment of desires
Like the previous hieroglyph, it helps in execution cherished desires, is a more powerful amulet in comparison with it.
Proverbs in Chinese
Often, fans of Chinese or Japanese culture who trust the horoscope have their zodiac sign stamped on their skin in the Chinese or Japanese horoscope. The most common place for a tattoo is the neck (sometimes the stomach or back). You can also get a tattoo on your arm, shoulder, behind the ear or on your ankle.
The Chinese and Japanese prefer hieroglyphs with English translations as tattoos, which often have a lot of errors. Europeans often make do with tattoos with primitive meanings.
You can also choose a tattoo that means some proverb or word that has meaning for you special meaning. This tattoo will become your personal talisman. The photo below shows hieroglyphs representing simple objects:
If you want a tattoo with several hieroglyphs at once, choose a proverb or the desired phrase. She can express your life credo, character and life goals. Moreover, Chinese proverbs are very instructive and interesting. You can choose any proverb from the photo below:
Many celebrities get tattoos in the form of hieroglyphs, believing in their magical power or adding a special meaning. Eg, Janet Jackon has several tattoos of hieroglyphs on his neck.
Britney Spears filled with a hieroglyph, which translated means “strange”. The singer claims that she wanted to get a tattoo with the translation “mystical”, but did not get the desired result.
From another singer, Melanie C, also has a tattoo on her shoulder that means “Girl Power.” This phrase was the motto music group Spice girls. Singer Pink got a tattoo that translates to “happiness.”
Keys in hieroglyphs
Some hieroglyphs seem intuitive. Many images are similar to the objects and things that they depict. This is explained by the fact that hieroglyphs originated from pictograms, which depict their meaning as accurately as possible with a picture.
For example, the character 日 means the sun; it is used in all languages East Asia. Initially, its image was round, but over time it changed a little. Hieroglyphs round shape stopped being used in writing due to its inconvenience.
In addition, a common hieroglyph in different scripts brought peoples closer together. This symbol is considered a key, it is used in such hieroglyphs as:
- The character with a line below 旦 means dawn;
- The character with a left slash 旧 means "ancient".
Another key 厂, resembling the letter "g", also has different meanings in different words:
- The curl character 厄 translates to "difficulty";
- The multi-stick character 历 means “calendar, history”;
- The character with a cross 厈 means "cliff".
Where to get a tattoo
Many people who get tattoos of hieroglyphs believe in their miraculous power. If you believe that a tattoo can protect you from evil spirits or troubles, get it in a visible place. A tattoo on an open part of the body wards off misfortunes and problems.
Often the neck is chosen as a place for a tattoo, but it is not necessary to get it there. Great place there will also be an arm or collarbone area.
You can also get a tattoo on a closed area of the body - the back, side, lower abdomen, leg or ankle. Combinations of inscriptions with drawings of Chinese women, dragons, etc. look very nice.
Tattoos can be made in 2D and 3D format. The latter look quite impressive, especially on the back or stomach.
Such tattoos are more popular among Europeans than among the Chinese or Japanese.
Tattoos in the form of hieroglyphs have always been popular and are unlikely to ever go out of fashion. Lovers oriental culture people often see mystical meaning in tattoos.
Before going to the salon, you need to carefully consider your future tattoo, so as not to get something absurd on your body. There are cases when a person trusts the master, expressing his preferences and not understanding hieroglyphs at all. The master types in a completely different phrase or word that the client asks for, often insulting or humiliating.
Nihao! Chinese writing appeared around the 3rd century BC thanks to the historiographer Tsang Jie, who developed a set of pictograms that later became the basis for the language's hieroglyphs. Today, Chinese is one of the most interesting and oldest languages in the world, containing many secrets and legends.
- The Chinese language is written with more than 40,000 characters.
- Thanks to Deng Xiaoping, 拼音 (pinyin) was introduced in 1959 - phonetic transcription hieroglyphs, after which it became possible to study Chinese as an ordinary foreign language.
- Many characters are incredibly similar to each other - 很 and 银, 问 and 间, 足 and 是, 找 and 我.
- All this happens due to the fact that absolutely all hieroglyphs consist of keys (radicals). For example, the word “good” consists of 女 (ní - woman) and 子 (zý - child). As the teachers explain it, a woman and a child are always good. But we are unable to understand this logic.
- Although sometimes it is very possible: the hieroglyph denoting difficulties and troubles is depicted in the form of two women under one roof.
- One word in Chinese can have several dozen meanings depending on the intonation with which it is pronounced. So the word "chiang" can mean "must", "command", "general", "river", "soy sauce", "mechanic", "drop", "descend" or "surround".
- The words “school” and “family”, as well as “cheerfulness” and “tea” in Chinese are denoted by the same characters.
- Chinese is a tonal language, the same vowel can be pronounced five times different ways(no tone, flat, rising, descending-rising, descending) - a, ā, á, ǎ, à.
- Learning Chinese begins with a herd of healthy heads sitting and shouting syllables in different tones to the whole class. A terrible sight.
- If you don't pay attention to the tone or add an extra dot in the hieroglyph, you can get into trouble. As an example, the phrases “I smelled her” and “I kissed her” are one syllable in a different tone. Also, without putting two sticks in the hieroglyph “sell”, you can write “buy”.
- The most amazing thing is that the Chinese themselves understand each other perfectly without these throat-breaking jumps from tone to tone. Only we, foreigners, have to suffer like this...
- But it is also considered quite normal that the Chinese living in remote provinces absolutely do not understand each other.
- There is no character in Chinese that can be read in more than one syllable.
- Foreign languages are absolutely not held in high esteem in China. At the Beijing airport, where, logically, everyone is required to know at least a minimum of English, no one knew it (for comparison, at Charles de Gaulle, Barajas, Heathrow, information desk workers knew minimum required in 6–7 languages).
- During Olympic Games 2008 all signs and signs in Beijing were translated from Chinese into English. As a result, such gems as “Racist park” (“Racism Park”) appeared instead of “National Minorities Park”, the sign “In Peaceful time do not enter” at the emergency exit from the building and the inscription “Beware of running water”, prohibiting swimming in one of the city ponds.
- If you accurately translate the name of the Coca-Cola drink into Chinese characters, you get the phrase “Bite the wax tadpole.” Marketers of the Coca-Cola company had no choice but to change the name to “ko-ku-ko-le,” which translated from Chinese means “Mouthful of Happiness.”
- Although there are several words that even in Russian sound similar. These are tea (chá), coffee (kafey), and mom and dad (mama and pá).
- Russia and Ukraine are those countries for which no designation was found, and hieroglyphs were selected that were as similar in sound as possible: Russia - 俄罗斯 [olósy], Ukraine - 乌克兰 [ukalán].
- But there are also those countries for which designations have been found: USA - 美国 (meiguo), England - 英国 [yinguo], France - 法国 [fáguo]. The strange thing is that, looking at the hieroglyphs, America is a beautiful country, England is a heroic country, France is a legitimate country, China is a middle country (中国 [chenguo]).
- There are no Chinese keyboards. All of them are entered in pinyin - you type the Latin alphabet and use the number to select the desired hieroglyph. Everything is very simple.
- Chinese language lacks punctuation.
- A 56-year-old resident of Shanghai filed a lawsuit against the publishers of the most popular explanatory dictionary Chinese language "Xinhua Zidian". The plaintiff claims to have found 4,000 errors in the dictionary.
- Those who have experienced negotiations in Chinese have noticed a lack of simultaneous translation, except in cases where the translator has the protocol of the event in hand in advance. To ensure quality interpretation the translator needs to know, at least approximately, what will be said by each participant in the meeting.
- Most of the 4,100 Chinese surnames are written with a single character.
- Chinese language is one of the most ancient languages existing languages. He also has the most ancient writing of those currently in use.
- The language is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as one of the most difficult languages in the world. The record list lists it alongside the Chippewa, Haida, Tabasaran and Eskimo languages.
- In Chinese there are no specific words for “yes” and “no”. When you need to answer a question, you just need to repeat the verb: for example, to the question “Do you like rice?” The Chinese must answer “I love” or “I don’t like.”
- Among Chinese speakers, there is a higher percentage of people with absolute pitch, as they naturally become accustomed to distinguishing tones from early childhood.
- In the translation of the Gospel into Chinese, the phrase “In the beginning was the Word” sounds like “In the beginning was Tao,” and “I am the Bread of Life” as “I am the Rice of Life.” The translation of the Orthodox New Testament into Chinese was completed by Archimandrite Gury (Karpov) in 1864. IN currently Only one copy of this book has survived.
- The grammar of the language is elementary. Absence of cases, declensions and genders, uniform and always the same construction of phrases, minimal amount prepositions. If not for 40,000 hieroglyphs.