Cantonese is another name for the Yue dialect, which is spoken in southern China.

Cantonese is considered to be the oldest variety of the Chinese language, with no variations in the last fifteen hundred years.

It is the third largest language of the Chinese language group, after Mandarin and Wu (or Shanghainese).

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About Cantonese translators and localisation

Cantonese is predominantly spoken in Guangdong Province in the capital Guangzhou. In Hong Kong, it is an official language and is used in education and the media. Cantonese is the most widely spoken Chinese language in the world. Hong Kong has been called the largest Cantonese-speaking city in the world. Most "Chinatowns" in European and American cities are inhabited by Cantonese speakers.

Fasttranslator works with Cantonese translators in different parts of the world. Localisation is, therefore, a matter of course in our translations. This means we customise the translation based on the geographical area, target audience and needs. Do you need a translation within a specific subject area? We have extensive experience with translations related to the Asian business market.

The history of the Cantonese language

Historically, Cantonese was written in Classical Chinese, but during the twentieth century, an informal Cantonese writing system emerged that is mainly used in Hong Kong.

There are now magazines and newspapers that use Cantonese rather than standard Chinese script.

Written and spoken language

Western concepts for describing language differ in many ways from Chinese terminology, partly because of the unifying power of Chinese characters and partly because of the differences in the political and social development of China compared to Europe.

After the dissolution of the Roman Empire, Europe was fragmented into areas that were often characterised by language.

Through a common standard of written language, China was able to maintain cultural and political unity within a large geographical area on a completely different scale.

This has led the Chinese to make a clearer distinction between written and spoken languages.

Just over two thousand years of a common official written language, which is maintained even today and applies to all dialects.

Written and spoken language

Western concepts for describing language differ in many ways from Chinese terminology, partly because of the unifying power of Chinese characters and partly because of the differences in the political and social development of China compared to Europe.

After the dissolution of the Roman Empire, Europe was fragmented into areas that were often characterised by language.

Through a common standard of written language, China was able to maintain cultural and political unity within a large geographical area on a completely different scale.

This has led the Chinese to make a clearer distinction between written and spoken languages.

Just over two thousand years of a common official written language, which is maintained even today and applies to all dialects.

Get your quote now!