Shanghainese: The Vibrant Language of Shanghai
Shanghainese, also known as the Shanghai dialect or Hu language, is a variety of Wu Chinese spoken in the central districts of the City of Shanghai and its surrounding areas1. It is classified as part of the Sino-Tibetan language family.To get more news about what is shanghainese, you can citynewsservice.cn official website.
Shanghainese is a representative dialect of Northern Wu and contains vocabulary and expressions from the entire Northern Wu area, which includes southern Jiangsu and northern Zhejiang2. With nearly 14 million speakers, Shanghainese is also the largest single coherent form of Wu Chinese.
One of the unique features of Shanghainese is its rich vowel system. Shanghainese, like other Wu varieties, is rich in vowels and consonants, with around twenty unique vowel qualities1. Similarly, Shanghainese also has obstruent, which is rare outside of Wu and varieties.
The speech of Shanghai had long been influenced by those spoken around Jiaxing, then Suzhou during the Qing Dynasty. Suzhounese literature, Chuanqi, Tanci, and folk songs all influenced early Shanghainese1. During the 1850s, the port of Shanghai was opened, and a large number of migrants entered the city1. This led to many loanwords from both the West and the East, especially from Ningbonese, and like Cantonese in Hong Kong, English.
In recent decades, Shanghainese has become one of the fastest-developing languages of the Wu Chinese subgroup, undergoing rapid changes and quickly replacing Suzhounese as the prestige dialect of the Yangtze River Delta region1. It underwent sustained growth that reached a peak in the 1930s during the Republican era, when migrants arrived in Shanghai and immersed themselves in the local tongue1.
However, in recent decades, the status of Shanghainese has declined relative to Mandarin, which most Shanghainese speakers can also speak. Migrants who move from other Chinese cities to Shanghai have little ability to speak Shanghainese1. Among the migrant people, some believe Shanghainese represents the superiority of native Shanghainese people.
In conclusion, Shanghainese is a vibrant and unique language with a rich history and cultural significance. Despite the challenges it faces in the modern era, it continues to be an integral part of the identity of the people of Shanghai and a fascinating subject of study for linguists and language enthusiasts alike.
