The Inheritance and Spread of Chinese in Malaysia

Chinese was spread to Southeast Asia with the Chinese immigrants from Fujian, Guangdong and other places. Its development can be divided into three stages: 1) dialect inheritance stage; 2) dialect-based inheritance stage with Mandarin as the auxiliary; 3) Mandarin-based inheritance stage with dialect as the auxiliary. The inheritance path of Chinese is different in each stage. In the first stage, the dialect period mainly relied on family, associations, private schools, etc.; in the second stage, new schools, Chinese newspapers, etc. became emerging inheritance paths; in the third stage, in addition to inheritance paths such as Chinese schools, Chinese media, communities, and families, the Internet and new media also contribute to the inheritance of the Chinese language. Chinese has not only been maintained in Malaysia, but also developed its own characteristics. In early period, dialects (especially Minnan dialect) came into contact with Malay, resulting in mixed languages such as Baba Malay, Penang Hokkien, Kelantan Hokkien, etc.; after localization, Mandarin gradually formed Malaysian Mandarin, which is different from other Chinese variants in vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, etc., and has become an important variant of global Chinese. With the opening of Chinese classes in national schools, non-Chinese students attending Chinese primary schools, and the establishment of Confucius Institutes in Malaysia, the spread of Chinese has entered a new phase. The spread of Chinese to more non-Chinese people has formed two routes of inheritance and spread of Chinese in Malaysia, making it unique in the world.

Keywords

Inheritance of Chinese, Inheritance path, Spread of Chinese, language contact, Malaysian Chinese

source

International Journal of Chinese Language Education; Dec 2024; Issue No. 16; p.69-84

Language

Chinese