Eastern Min | |
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Min Dong (閩東語) Foochowese (福州話) | |
平話 | |
Pronunciation | "Bàng-uâ" in different dialects [paŋ˨˩ŋuɑ˨˦˨] (Fuzhou) [paŋ˥ŋuɑ˦˨] (Fuqing) [paŋ˥˦˦ŋua˧˨˦] (Gutian) [paŋ˧˩ŋuɑ˩˧˩] (Matsu) [paŋ˨ɰo˧˧˨] (Ningde) [paŋ˨ɰo˨˧] (Fu'an) [paŋ˨ŋua˨˩˨] (Xiapu) [paŋ˨˩ŋua˨˩˧] (Zherong) |
Native to | Southeast China, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, United States (chiefly New York City) |
Region | Eastern Fujian (Fuzhou and Ningde), Matsu; parts of Taishun and Cangnan, Wenzhou, Zhejiang |
Native speakers | 9.5 million (2007)[1] |
Sino-Tibetan
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Dialects |
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Chinese characters and Foochow Romanized | |
Official status | |
Official language in | Matsu Islands, Taiwan (as local language[2])[3] |
Recognised minority language in | |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | cdo |
Glottolog | mind1253 |
![]() Eastern Min |
Eastern Min or Min Dong (traditional Chinese: 閩東語; simplified Chinese: 闽东语; pinyin: Mǐndōngyǔ, Foochow Romanized: Mìng-dĕ̤ng-ngṳ̄) is a branch of the Min group of the Sinitic languages of China. The prestige form and most commonly cited representative form is the Fuzhou dialect, the speech of the capital of Fujian.[5]
Eastern Min varieties are mainly spoken in the eastern part of Fujian Province (闽东) of the People's Republic of China, in and near the cities of Fuzhou and Ningde. They are also widely encountered as the mother tongue on the Matsu Islands controlled by the Republic of China. Additionally, the inhabitants of Taishun and Cangnan to the north of Fujian in Zhejiang also speak Eastern Min varieties. Eastern Min generally coexists with the official language, Standard Chinese, in all these areas.
Previously the Eastern Min varieties in the Matsu Islands were seen as a part of general Fujian varieties. The establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 severed the Matsu Islands from the rest of Fujian province, and as communications were cut off between the Republic of China (now including Taiwan and without Mainland China) and the PRC, the identity of the Matsu Islands specifically became established. Additionally, the varieties of Eastern Min on the Matsu Islands became seen as a Matsu language (馬祖話).[6]
As the coastal area of Fujian has been the historical homeland of a large worldwide diaspora of overseas Chinese, varieties of Eastern Min can also be found across the world, especially in their respective Chinatowns. Cities with high concentrations of such immigrants include New York City,[7] especially Little Fuzhou, Manhattan, Sunset Park, Brooklyn and Flushing, Queens.
They are also found in various Chinatown communities in Europe, including London, Paris and Prato in Italy.[8]
Chinese communities within Ikebukuro, Tokyo[9] as well as Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia have significant populations of Eastern Min speakers. Fuzhou communities can also be found in Sitiawan, Perak and Yong Peng, Johor in West Malaysia.[citation needed]
Eastern Min is descended from Proto-Min, which split from the transition from Old Chinese into Middle Chinese during the Han Dynasty.[10] It has been classified by Pan Maoding and Jerry Norman as belonging to the Coastal Min branch, and is thus closely related to Northern Min.[11][10]
Norman lists four distinctive features in the development of Eastern Min:[10]
Eastern Min is conventionally divided into three branches:[12]
Besides these three branches, some dialect islands in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong have been classified as Eastern Min.[13][14] Zhongshan Min is a group of Min varieties spoken in the Zhongshan county of Guangdong, divided into three branches: the Longdu dialect and Nanlang dialect belong to the Eastern Min group, while the Sanxiang dialect belongs to Southern Min.[15][16]
The Eastern Min group has a phonology which is particularly divergent from other varieties of Chinese. Aside from the Manjiang dialect, both Houguan and Funing groups are similar in the number of initials, with the Fu'an dialect having 17 initials, two more than the Fuzhou dialect, the additions being /w/ and /j/ or /ɰ/ as separate phonemes (the glottal stop is common to both but excluded from this count). The Manjiang dialect on the other hand has been influenced by the Wu dialects of Zhejiang, and hence has significantly more initials than the varieties of Fujian.
The finals vary significantly between varieties, with the extremes being represented by Manjiang dialects at a low of 39 separate finals, and the Ningde dialect representing the high at 69 finals.
Types | Houguan subgroup (侯官片) | Funing subgroup (福寧片) | Manjiang (蠻講) | ||||
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City | Fuzhou (福州) | Fuqing (福清) | Gutian (古田) | Ningde (宁德) | Fuding (福鼎) | Fu'an (福安) | Qianku, Cangnan, Zhejiang (蒼南錢庫) |
Number of Initials | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 29 |
Number of Finals | 46 | 42 | 51 | 69 | 41 | 56 | 39 |
Number of Tones | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
Eastern Min varieties generally have seven tones, by the traditional count (based on the four tones of Middle Chinese, including the entering tone as a separate entity). In the middle of the Qing dynasty, eight tones were attested, but the historical rising tones (上聲) re-merged.[17]
Dark level 陰平 | Light level 陽平 | Rising 上聲 | Dark departing 陰去 | Light departing 陽去 | Dark entering 陰入 | Light entering 陽入 | |
Fuzhou 福州話 |
˦ 44 | ˥˧ 53 | ˧˩ 31 | ˨˩˧ 213 | ˨˦˨ 242 | ˨˧ 23 | ˥ 5 |
Fu'an 福安話 |
˧˧˨ 332 | ˨ 22 | ˦˨ 42 | ˨˩ 21 | ˧˨˦ 324 | ˨ 2 | ˥ 5 |
Ningde 寧德話 |
˦ 44 | ˩ 11 | ˦˨ 42 | ˧˥ 35 | ˥˨ 52 | ˦ 4 | ˥ 5 |
Fuding 福鼎話 |
˦˦˥ 445 | ˨˩˨ 212 | ˥ 55 | ˥˧ 53 | ˨ 22 | ˥ 5 | ˨˧ 23 |
Taishun, Zhejiang 泰順 |
˨˩˧ 213 | ˧ 33 | ˦˥˥ 455 | ˥˧ 53 | ˦˨ 42 | ˥ 5 | ˦˧ 43 |
Qianku, Cangnan, Zhejiang 蒼南錢庫蠻講 |
˦ 44 | ˨˩˦ 214 | ˦˥ 45 | ˦˩ 41 | ˨˩ 21 | ˥ 5 | ˨˩ 21 |
Miaojiaqiao, Cangnan, Zhejiang 蒼南繆家橋蠻講 |
˧ 33 | ˨˩˧ 213 | ˦˥ 45 | ˦˩ 41 | ˩ 11 | ˥ 5 | ˩ 1 |
The Eastern Min varieties have a wide of range of sandhi phenomena. As well as tone sandhi, common to many varieties of Chinese, there is also the assimilation of consonants[18] and vowel alternations (such as rime tensing).
Tone sandhi across Eastern Min varieties can be regressive (where the last syllable affects the pronunciation of those before), progressive (where earlier syllables affect the later ones) or mutual (where both or all syllables change). The rules are generally quite complicated.
Initial assimilation of consonants is usually progressive, and may create new phonemes that are not phonemically contrastive in initial position but do contrast in medial position.[19] A few varieties exhibit regressive assimilation too.