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Hong Kong Cantonese (Chinese: 香港粵語 / 港式粵語 / 香港廣東話) is a form of Yue Chinese commonly spoken in Hong Kong. Although Hongkongers largely identify this variant of Chinese with the term "Cantonese" (廣東話), a variety of publications in mainland China describe the variant as Hong Kong speech (香港話). There are slight differences between the pronunciation used in Hong Kong Cantonese and that of the Cantonese spoken in the neighbouring Chinese province of Guangdong, where Cantonese (based on the Guangzhou dialect) is a lingua franca. Over the years, Hong Kong Cantonese has also absorbed foreign vocabularies and developed a large set of Hong Kong-specific vocabularies. These differences from the Canton norm are the result of British rule between 1841 and 1997, as well as the closure of the Hong Kong-China border immediately after the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
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Before the arrival of British settlers in 1842, the inhabitants of Hong Kong mainly spoke the Dongguan-Bao'an (Tung Kwun-Po On) dialect of Yue, as well as Hakka, Teochew, and Tanka. These dialects are all remarkably different from Cantonese.
After the British acquired Hong Kong Island, Kowloon Peninsula and the New Territories from the Qing in 1841 (officially 1842), 1860 and 1898 respectively, large numbers of merchants and workers came to Hong Kong from the city of Canton, the centre of Cantonese. Cantonese became the dominant spoken language in Hong Kong. The frequent migration between Hong Kong and other Cantonese-speaking areas did not cease until the 1949 when the Communists took over mainland China. During this period, the Cantonese spoken in Hong Kong was very similar to that in Canton.
Around 1949, the year that the People's Republic of China was established, Hong Kong saw a large influx of refugees from different areas of China. The Hong Kong Government closed the border to halt the influx, but illegal immigration from mainland China into Hong Kong continued. Because of this, the correspondence between language and ethnicity may generally be true though not absolute, as many Chinese who speak Hong Kong Cantonese may come from other areas of China, especially Shanghai or non-Cantonese regions of Guangdong where Hakka and Teochiu prevail. Movement, communication, and relations between Hong Kong and mainland China became very limited, and consequently the evolution of Cantonese in Hong Kong diverged from that in the rest of Guangdong. In mainland China, the use of Mandarin as the language of official use and education was enforced. In British ruled Hong Kong and the Hong Kong SAR, Cantonese was and continues to be the medium of instruction in schools, along with written English and written Chinese. And because of the long exposure to English during the colonial period, large number of English words were loaned into Hong Kong Cantonese, e.g. "巴士" (/páːsǐː/), literately, "bus". Hong Kong people even started to calque English constructions, for example, "咁都唔 make sense" (literately "it still does not make sense."). Therefore, the vocabularies of Cantonese in Mainland China and Hong Kong differed.
Moreover, the pronunciation of Cantonese changed while the change either did not occur in Mainland China or took place much slower. For example, merging of /n/ initial into /l/ initial and /ŋ/ initial into null initial were observed. Due to the limited communication between Hong Kong and Mainland China, these changes only had a limited effect in Mainland China at that time. As a result, the pronunciation of Cantonese between Hong Kong and Mainland China varied, and so native speakers may note the difference when listening to Hong Kong Cantonese and Mainland China Cantonese.
Hong Kong-based Cantonese can be found in Hong Kong popular culture such as Hong Kong films and Hong Kong pop music (Cantopop). Hong Kong people who have emigrated to other countries have brought Hong Kong Cantonese to other parts of the world.
In modern-day Hong Kong, many native speakers are unable to distinguish between certain phoneme pairs, causing them to merge one sound into another. Although this is often considered substandard and is frequently denounced as "lazy sound" (懶音), the phenomenon is becoming more widespread and is influencing other Cantonese-speaking regions. Contrary to popular opinion, some of these changes are not recent. The loss of the velar nasal (/ŋ/) was documented by Williams (1856), and the substitution of the liquid nasal (/l/) for the nasal initial (/n/) was documented by Cowles (1914).
Other observed shifts:
Today in Hong Kong, people still make an effort to avoid these sound merges in serious broadcasts and in education. Older people often do not exhibit these shifts in their speech, but some do. With the sound changes, the name of Hong Kong's Hang Seng Bank (香港恆生銀行), /hœ́ːŋ kɔ̌ːŋ hɐ̏ŋ sɐ́ŋ ŋɐ̏n hɔ̏ːŋ/, becomes /hœ́ːn kɔ̌ːn hɐ̏n sɐ́n ɐ̏n hɔ̏ːn/, sounding like Hon' Kon' itchy body (痕身 /hɐ̏n sɐ́n/) 'un cold (UN寒 /ɐ̏n hɔ̏ːn/) . The name of the Cantonese language (廣東話, "Guangdong speech") itself would be /kʷɔ̌ːŋ tʊ́ŋ wǎː/ without the merger, whereas /kɔ̌ːŋ tʊ́ŋ wǎː/ (sounding like "講東話": "speak eastern speech") and /kɔ̌ːn tʊ́ŋ wǎː/ (sounding like "趕東話" : "chase away eastern speech") are overwhelmingly popular.[1]
The shift affects the way some Hong Kong people speak other languages as well. This is especially evident in the pronunciation of certain English names: "Nicole" becomes leg ko, and "Leonardo" becomes lee on la doh. A very common example of the mixing of (/n/) and (/l/) is that of the word 你, , meaning "you." Even though the standard pronunciation should be (/nei/) , the word is often pronounced (/lei/) ,which is a surname,李, or the word 理, meaning theory. The merger of (/n/) and (/l/) also affects the choice of characters when the Cantonese media transliterate foreign names.
Prescriptivists who try to correct these "lazy sounds" often end up introducing hypercorrections. For instance, while attempting to ensure that people pronounce the initial /ŋ/, they may introduce it into words which have historically had a null-initial. One common example is that of the word 愛, meaning "love." Even though the standard pronunciation would be /ɔ̄ːi/, the word is often pronounced /ŋɔ̄ːi/.
In recent years, a number of Hong Kong secondary schools have tried to reverse this change by making the learning of Cantonese Pinyin part of the school Chinese curriculum.
Due to Hong Kong's unique historical background, Hong Kong Cantonese has evolved differently from the Chinese spoken in China, Taiwan and Singapore over the years. Hong Kong Cantonese has developed a number of phrases and expressions that are unique to the context of Hong Kong. These phrases and expressions usually make references to specific things that can only be found in Hong Kong or specific incidents that happened in Hong Kong.
Here are a few examples:
| Characters | Jyutping | literal meaning | actual meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 食皇家飯 | sik6 wong4 gaa1 faan6 | eating Royal meal | being imprisoned |
| 話知你九七 | waa6 zi1 nei3 gau2 cat1 | Who cares about your 1997? | Who cares? |
Here, the former refers to Hong Kong's status as a British colony, whose figurehead is the Royal Family, and the latter refers to the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong to China in 1997. The situations alluded to are both unique to Hong Kong.
Life in Hong Kong is characterised by the blending of Asian (southern Chinese in particular) and Western cultures, as well as the city's position as a major international business centre. In turn, Hong Kong influences have also spread widely into other cultures. As a result, a large number of loanwords are created in Hong Kong and then exported to China, Taiwan and Singapore. Some of the loanwords have become even more popular than their Chinese counterparts, in Hong Kong as well as in their destination cultures.
Selected loanword.[2]
| Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA | English | English pronunciation | Mandarin Chinese Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 巴士 | baa1 si2 | /paː˥siː˧˥/ | bus | /bʌs/ | Chinese: 公共汽車; Chinese: 公車; |
| 的士 | dik1 si2 | /tɪk˥siː˧˥/ | taxi | /ˈtæksi/ | Chinese: 計程車; (in Taiwan) Chinese: 出租車; (in Mainland) Chinese: 德士 (in Singapore and Malaysia, also a loanword from English) |
| 朱古力 | zyu1 gu1 lik1 | /tsyː˥kuː˥lɪk˥/ | chocolate | /ˈtʃɒklɪt/ | Chinese: 巧克力; also a loanword |
| 三文治 | saam1 man4 zi6 | /saːm˥mɐn˨˩tsiː˨/ | sandwich | /ˈsænwɪdʒ/ | Chinese: 三明治; also a loanword |
| 士多 | si6 do1 | /siː˨tɔː˥/ | store (retail), usually referring to a small convenience store | /stɔː/ | Chinese: 店舖; archaic, but still used occasionally in Hong Kong Chinese: 商店; |
| 士多啤梨 | si6 do1 be1 lei2 | /siː˨tɔː˥pɛː˥lei˧˥/ | strawberry | /ˈstrɔːbəri/ | Chinese: 草莓; |
| 啤梨 | be1 lei2 | /pɛː˥lei˧˥/ | pear | /peər/ | Chinese: 梨子 |
| 沙士 | saa1 si6 | /saː˥siː˨/ | SARS | /sɑːz/ | simplified Chinese: 嚴重急性呼吸道症侯群; traditional Chinese: 嚴重急性呼吸道症候群 |
| 拜拜 | baai1 baai3 | /paːi˥paːi˧/ | bye bye | /ˈbaɪbaɪ/ | Chinese: 再見; Chinese: 再會; Chinese: 告辭; (archaic) |
| 啤啤 | bi4 bi1 | /piː˨˩piː˥/ | baby | /ˈbeɪbi/ | Chinese: 嬰兒; |
| 阿蛇 | aa3 soe4 | /aː˧sœː˨˩/ | sir (policeman; teacher) | /sɜː/ | police - Chinese: 公安 (mainland China), 警察 teacher - Chinese: 老師, 先生 |
| 泊（車） | paak3˧ | /pʰaːk˧/ | to park | /pɑːk/ | Chinese: 停車; a relative translation. It merely means "to stop the car". |
| 菲林 | fei1 lam2 | /fei˥lɐm˧˥/ | film (photographic) | /fɪlm/ | Chinese: 膠卷; literally: Rubber Roll |
| 三文魚 | saam1 man4 jyu4 | /saːm˥mɐn˨˩jyː˨˩/ | salmon | /ˈsæmən/ | Chinese: 鮭魚; |
| 布菲 | bou6 fei1 | /pou˨fei˥/ | buffet (British/Commonwealth pronunciation) | /ˈbʊfeɪ/ | Chinese: 自助餐 |
| 沙律 | saa1 leot6 | /sa˥lɵt˨/ | salad | /ˈsaləd/ | Chinese: 沙拉 (also a loanword from English) |
| 呔 | taai1 | /taːi˥/ | tyre / tire or necktie | /taɪə(ɹ)/ | Tyre/Tire - Chinese: 輪胎; Necktie - Chinese: 領帶; |
| Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA | Japanese | Japanese Romaji | English Meaning | Mandarin Chinese Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 卡拉OK | kaa1 laa1 ou1 kei1 | /kʰaː˥laː˥ou˥kʰei˥/ | カラオケ | karaoke | karaoke (literally: "empty orchestra"; kara = empty, oke = orchestra) | No Formal Chinese term exists, but Chinese: 唱歌 (merely "to sing") is a relative translation |
| 老世 (usually miswritten as 老細) | lou5 sai3 | /lou˩˧sɐi˧/ | 世帯主 | setainushi | head of a company/chief/boss | Chinese: 老闆 (boss)， Chinese: 東主 (old term for company owner)， Chinese: 上司 (supervisor/superior)，Chinese: 事頭 (Supervisor, Cantonese term used in Hong Kong and Macao) |
| 奸爸爹 | gaan1 baa1 de1 | /kaːn˥paː˥tɛː˥/ | 頑張って | ganbatte | a cheering-on term/Come On | Chinese: 努力 (in this context, keep up the effort)，Chinese: 加油 (Keep up!) |
| Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA | French | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 冷 | laang1 | /laːŋ˥/ | laine | yarn |
| 梳乎厘 | so1 fu4 lei4 | /sɔː˥fuː˨˩lei˨˩/ | soufflé | soufflé |
| English | Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA |
|---|---|---|---|
| dim sum | 點心 | dim2 sam1 | /tǐːmsɐ́m/ |
| kumquat | 金橘 | gam1 gwat1 | /kɐ́mkʷɐ́t/ |
| loquat | 蘆橘 | lou4 gwat1 | /lȍukʷɐ́t/ |
| wonton | 雲吞 | wan4 tan1 | /wɐ̏ntʰɐ́n/ |
| bak choy | 白菜 | baak6 coi3 | /pàːktsʰɔ̄ːi/ |
| ketchup | 茄汁 | ke2 zap1 | /kʰe tsɐp/ |
| Mandarin Characters | Mandarin Pinyin | Cantonese Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA | English Meaning | Other Mandarin synonyms | Mandarin Pinyin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 買單 | mǎi dān | 埋單 | maai4 daan1 | /mȁːitáːn/ | "Bill/Check, please." (used when calling for the bill at a restaurant) | 結賬 | |
| 搭檔 | dā dàng | 拍檔 | paak3 dong3 | /pʰāːktɔ̄ːŋ/ | partner | 夥伴 (in ownership and business), 舞伴 (in dancing) | |
| 打的 | dǎ dī | 搭的士 | daap3 dik1 si2 | /tāːptɪ́ksǐː/ | to ride a taxi | ||
| 無釐頭 | wú lí tóu | 無釐頭, corruption of 無來頭 | mou4 lei4 tau4 | /mȍulȅitʰɐ̏u/ | nonsensical humor (see mo lei tau) | ||
| 亮仔 or 靚仔 | liàng zǎi | 靚仔 | leng3 zai2 | /lɛ́ːŋtsɐ̌i/ | handsome (pretty) boy/young man | 帥哥兒, 俊男, 哥們 (in Beijing only) | |
| 拍拖 | pāi tuō | 拍拖 | paak3 to1 | /pʰāːktʰɔ́ː/ | to date; to court | 追求, 求愛 | |
| 很正 | hěn zhèng | 好正 | hou2 zeng3 | /hǒutsɛ̄ːŋ/ | (colloquial) awesome; perfect; just right | ||
| 搞掂 or 搞定 | gǎo diàn or gǎo dìng | 搞掂 | gaau2 dim6 | /kǎːutìːm/ | "Done!", to complete; completed (when used as an exclamation) | 辦妥, 做完, 做好, 弄完 |
| Taiwanese Mandarin Characters | Taiwanese Mandarin Pinyin | Cantonese Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 塞雷 猴塞雷 |
sāi léi hóu sāi léi |
犀利 好犀利 (Comes from Classical Chinese) |
sai1 lei6 hou2 sai1 lei6 |
/sɐ́ilèi/ /hǒusɐ́ilèi/ |
great; powerful very great; very powerful |
| Japanese Kana (Kanji) | Japanese Rōmaji | Cantonese Characters | Jyutping | Cantonese IPA | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ヤムチャ (飲茶) | yamucha | 飲茶 | jam2 caa4 | /jɐ̌mtsʰȁː/ | To drink tea or go to Chinese restaurant (yum cha) |
| チャーシュー (叉焼) | chashyu | 叉燒 | caa1 siu1 | Roasted pork (literally roasted on a fork char siu) | |
| チャーハン (炒飯) | chahan | 炒飯 | chaau2 faan6 | To stir-fry rice (Fried rice) |
Hong Kong Cantonese has a high number of foreign loanwords. Sometimes, the part of speech of the incorporated words are also changed, like "佢地好friend", translated into English as "they are very 'friend'", means "they are good friends". The word "friend" is changed from a noun into an adjective. In some examples, some new meanings of English words are even created. For example, "至yeah", literally "the most yeah", means "the trendiest". Originally, "yeah" means "yes" in English, but it means "trendy" when being incorporated into Hong Kong Cantonese. However, semantic change is common in loanwords. When foreign words are borrowed into Cantonese, polysyllabic words and monosyllabic words tend to become disyllabic, and the second syllable is in the Upper Rising tone (the second tone). For example, "kon1 si2" (coins), "sat6 kiu1" (security) and "ka1 si2" (class). A few polysyllabic words become monosyllabic though, like "mon1" (monitor), literally means computer monitor. And some new Cantonese lexical items are created according to the morphology of Cantonese. For example, "laai1 記" from the word "library". Most of the disyllabic words and some of the monosyllabic words are incorporated as their original pronunciation, with some minor changes according to the Cantonese phonotactics.
Incorporating words from foreign languages into Cantonese is also acceptable by most Cantonese speakers. Hong Kong Cantonese speakers frequently code-mix although they can distinguish foreign words from Cantonese ones. For instance, "咁都唔 make sense", literally means "it doesn't make sense". After a Cantonese speaker decides to code-mix a foreign word in a Cantonese sentence, syntactical rules of Cantonese will be followed. For instance, "sure" (肯定) can be used like "你 su1 唔 su1 aa4?" (are you sure?) as if it were its Cantonese counterpart "你肯唔肯定?", using the A-not-A question construction.
In some circumstances, code-mixing is preferable because it can simplify sentences. In the case of some technological terms, code-mixing becomes very hard to avoid. For example, Hong Kong people find it difficult to say “你用個 mau1-si2 right-click嚟highlight啲字” (“You use the right-click of the mouse to highlight the words”) in pure Cantonese. It is actually not surprising if a Hong Konger does not know how to express "mouse", "right-click" and "highlight" in Chinese. Code-mixing is almost unavoidable for some technical terms like "trial balance" in accounting and "benzene" in chemistry because of the use of English as the medium of instruction at the tertiary level and oftentimes the secondary level. Many people in Hong Kong do not know the Chinese names of many technical terms and as a result, it is expected that English names of the terms be used. This is also a headache of prescriptive linguists and Chinese teachers who advocate the use of pure Cantonese. Code-mixing is in general not a problem but it could impose a language barrier between Hong Kongers and mainland Chinese as the former do not know the Chinese names of the terms while the latter, the English of the terms.