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Cantonese Culture

Cantonese people originate from the Guangdong province located in southern China. The majority of people in Hong Kong are Cantonese, as are the people of Macau. Cantonese people have played prominent roles in entertainment, politics, the arts, and business. Bruce Lee was perhaps the most popular person of Cantonese origin, and has influenced people around the world. Of course, Cantonese culture established its roots many centuries ago as part of the unique history of the Guangdong province.

Standard Cantonese is the only other Chinese language, besides Standard Mandarin, that is widely used around the world. The Cantonese language is used in its own versions of movies, television shows, and songs. Chinese comic books are commonly written using Cantonese characters. The widespread use of the language and the unique Cantonese culture allows the people of southern China and the two special administrative regions of the People’s Republic of China—Hong Kong and Macau—set themselves apart from the mainland Chinese people.

Cantonese opera is a tradition that dates back to the Song Dynasty of the 13th century. A form of modern Cantonese music known as Cantopop is popular among the people of Malaysia, southern China, Taiwan, Singapore and, to some extent, Japanese people. In addition, Chinese communities in Canada, the United States and Australia are often fans of Cantopop.

One of the primary draws to Cantonese culture is the cuisine. Cantonese food is popular in the western world, and is known for its freshness and unique ways of incorporating seafood into meals. Dim sum is now enjoyed around the world and is unique in its small portions that include a variety of tasty dishes.

Yue, more commonly known as Cantonese, is the primary language spoken in southern China. There are currently about 70 million people who speak the Cantonese language. A way to thoroughly enjoy a trip to southern China, Hong Kong or Macau is to learn how to speak Cantonese before your vacation. While you are likely to find more language tools that teach people how to speak Mandarin, there are Cantonese podcast lessons and other innovative teaching tools available these days.

As you , your appreciation for Cantonese culture is sure to grow. The ability to converse with people whose native language is Cantonese will help you to learn more about the unique culture, including Cantonese cuisine, history, music, art, and much more. Learning a new language will broaden your life experiences, increase your job prospects, challenge your brain, and enhance your travels to areas of the world where Cantonese is commonly spoken.