台山话

Taishanese

Sinitic (Yue, Sze Yap)

FamilySinitic (Yue, Sze Yap) Speakers~2M (Taishan + global diaspora) ScriptTraditional Chinese CountriesChina (Taishan, Pearl River Delta), USA, Canada, Australia Official inNo (regional) Vitalitysafe ISO 639-3yue

Taishanese (Toisanese, 台山话) is a Sze Yap (四邑) Yue Chinese variety from Taishan in the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong, with ~2M speakers worldwide. It is not mutually intelligible with Standard Cantonese, despite both being Yue: Taishanese has lateral fricatives /ɬ/ where Cantonese has /s/, distinct tone categories, and substantially different vocabulary. Crucially, Taishanese was the dominant Chinese variety of early Chinese America — the 19th-century Transcontinental Railroad and Gold Rush laborers, the founders of San Francisco and New York Chinatowns, and the families subject to the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882-1943) were overwhelmingly Taishanese-speaking, making it the historical ancestor of "American Cantonese" before the post-1965 Hong Kong wave brought Standard Cantonese.

Where it is spoken

20 core words in Taishanese

Water

/ɬui˧˧/

Fire

/fɔ˥˥/

Sun

日头

/ɲit˨˨hau˧˧/

Moon

月光

/ɲut˧˧kwɔŋ˨˨/

Mother

阿妈

/a˧˧ma˥˥/

Father

阿爸

/a˧˧pa˥˥/

Eat

/ɬik˧˧/

Drink

/ɲim˧˧/

Love

/ɔi˧˧/

Heart

/ɬim˨˨/

Tree

/ɬi˧˨/

House

/uk˥˥/

Dog

/kau˧˧/

Cat

/miau˨˨/

Hand

/ɬau˧˧/

Eye

/ŋaːn˧˧/

Hello

你好

/nei˧˧hau˧˧/

Thank you

多谢

/tɔ˨˨ɬɛ˧˨/

One

/it˥˥/

Good

/hau˧˧/

Sources

Words compared

Compared with related Sinitic (Yue, Sze Yap) languages

Meaning TaishaneseDongguan YueGaozhou YueNanning YuePenang HokkienZhongshan YueCantonese
Water /ɬui˧˧/ /sui˧˥/ /sɵi˧˥/ /ɬɵy˧˥/ /tsui˥˧/ /sɵy˧˥/ /sɵy˧˥/
Fire /fɔ˥˥/ /fɔ˧˥/ /fɔ˧˥/ /fɔ˧˥/ /hue˥˧/ /fɔ˧˥/ /fɔː˧˥/
Sun 日头 /ɲit˨˨hau˧˧/ 日头 /jɐt˨˨tʰɐu˨˩/ 日头 /jɐt˨tʰɐu˧˧/ 日头 /jɐt˨tʰɐu˨˩/ 日頭 /lit˥˥tʰau˨˨/ 日頭 /jɐt˨ tʰɐu˨˩/ 日頭 /jɐt˨ tʰɐu˨˩/
Moon 月光 /ɲut˧˧kwɔŋ˨˨/ 月光 /jyt˨kʷɔŋ˥˥/ 月光 /jyt˨kwɔŋ˥˥/ 月光 /ŋyt˨kʷɔŋ˥˥/ 月娘 /ɡueʔ˥˥niũ˨˦/ 月光 /jyt˨ kwɔŋ˥˧/ 月光 /jyːt˨ kʷɔːŋ˥/
Mother 阿妈 /a˧˧ma˥˥/ 阿妈 /a˧˧ma˥˥/ 妈妈 /maː˥˥maː˥˥/ 老妈 /lau˧˩ma˥˥/ 阿媽 /a˧˧ma˧˧/ 老母 /lou˩˧ mou˩˧/ 媽媽 /maː˥maː˥/
Father 阿爸 /a˧˧pa˥˥/ 阿爸 /a˧˧pa˥˥/ 爸爸 /paː˨˩paː˨˩/ 老窦 /lau˧˩tɐu˨˨/ 阿爸 /a˧˧pa˥˥/ 老豆 /lou˩˧ tɐu˨/ 爸爸 /paː˨˩paː˥/
Eat /ɬik˧˧/ /sɪk˨/ /sɪk˨˨/ /ɬɪk˨/ /tsiaʔ˥˥/ /sɪk˨/ /sɪk˨/
Drink /ɲim˧˧/ /jɐm˧˥/ /jɐm˧˥/ /jɐm˧˥/ /lim˧˧/ /jɐm˧˥/ /jɐm˧˥/
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Han readings compared

Character TaishaneseNanning YueZhongshan YueHailu HakkaHuiyang HakkaDongguan YueGaozhou Yue
yit2 /jit̚˥˥/ jat1 /jɐt̚˥˥/ jat1 /jɐt̚˥˥/ yit /jit̚˥/ yit /jit̚˩/ jat1 /jɐt̚˥/ jat1 /jɐt̚˥/
ngei5 /ᵑɡei˧˨/ ji6 /ji˨˨/ ji6 /ji˨˨/ ngì /ŋi˧˧/ ngì /ŋi˥˧/ ji6 /jiː˨˨/ ji6 /jiː˨˨/
lham1 /ɬam˧˧/ thaam1 /θaːm˥˥/ saam1 /saːm˥˥/ sâm /sam˥˧/ sâm /sam˧˧/ saam1 /saːm˥˥/ saam1 /saːm˥˥/
lhei1 /ɬei˧˧/ thei3 /θei˧˧/ sei3 /sei˧˧/ /si˩˩/ /si˥˧/ sei3 /sei˧˧/ sei3 /sei˧˧/
ng4 /ŋ˨˩/ ng5 /ŋ˩˧/ ng5 /ŋ˩˧/ ńg /ŋ̩˨˦/ ńg /ŋ̍˧˩/ ng5 /ŋ̍˩˧/ ng5 /ŋ̍˩˧/
luuk5 /lɵk̚˧˨/ luk6 /lʊk̚˨˨/ luk6 /lʊk̚˨˨/ liu̍k /liuk̚˨/ liu̍k /liuk̚˥/ luk6 /lʊk̚˨/ luk6 /lʊk̚˨/
tit2 /tʰit̚˥˥/ cat1 /tsʰɐt̚˥/ cat1 /tsʰɐt̚˥/ chhit /tsʰit̚˥/ chhit /tsʰit̚˩/ cat1 /tsʰɐt̚˥/ cat1 /tsʰɐt̚˥/
bat2 /pat̚˥˥/ baat3 /paːt̚˧/ baat3 /paːt̚˧/ pat /pat̚˥/ pat /pat̚˩/ baat3 /paːt̚˧/ baat3 /paːt̚˧/
giu2 /kiu˥˥/ gau2 /kɐu˧˥/ gau2 /kɐu˧˥/ kiú /kiu˨˦/ kiú /kiu˧˩/ gau2 /kɐu˧˥/ gau2 /kɐu˧˥/
lhip5 /ɬɪp̚˧˨/ slap6 /ɬɐp̚˨/ sap6 /sɐp̚˨/ shi̍p /ʃip̚˨/ si̍p /sip̚˥/ sap6 /sɐp̚˨/ sap6 /sɐp̚˨/
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