Hi all,
I’m glad to find this thread and see speakers of different varieties of Southern Min!
I’m Phín-tsì from Taiwan. I speak, teach and have done research on Taiwanese.
I’m also engaged in the revitalization of Taiwanese so I share the sentiments you have, especially with Tiffany and Jim.
But don’t be too pessimistic. If we speak it, use it actively, and pass it on to the next generation, it will continue to be a vibrant language that bridges the past and the future, as well as connects us with other Hokkien speakers from different parts of the world.
One of the common issues is that Taiwanese speakers nowadays tend to switch to other more powerful languages like Chinese and English, and do not empower themselves with enough confidence and linguistic knowledge.
I understand that there is a general stereotype that Taiwanese is a low-prestige language, or “an archaic outdated language with no written language of its own” - but this is not true. It’s partly because of the education, in particular Chinese nationalist education and lack of Taiwanese language/culture/history in the curriculum, and also the aftermath of the White Terror and martial law.
The writing systems for Taiwanese & Hokkien have been around for centuries, and each has accumulated a good amount of literature.
For example, the play “荔鏡記” (Tale of the Lychee Mirror) was written about 450 years ago in Southern Min vernacular in Chinese/Han characters. There are other plays and thousands of “kua-á-tsheh”, or bards’ song books, published over the past two centuries. Those poems and songs include a wide range of topics from love songs and nursery rhymes to legends, history, customs, food, nature, jokes and even language learning - all written in Taiwanese or Hokkien (not classical/literary Chinese). That’s why some experts even call kua-á-tsheh the people’s encyclopedia.
And in the non-Han character traditions, there’s also Pe̍h-ōe-jī (POJ), also known as the church romanization system, that has been used for more than a hundred years. There are newspapers, novels, dictionaries and even medical books written in POJ.
Unlike Chinese characters, “illiterate” Taiwanese speakers could learn POJ in a few weeks and start consuming information and learning new knowledge by reading POJ texts.
Taiwan Church News, for example, was the first printed newspaper in Taiwan and it was written in POJ. This is the front page of the first edition of Taiwan Church News from July 12, 1885:
Here is an example of a family letter written in Taiwanese POJ about 100 years ago:
During Japanese rule, there was also the extended Japanese Kana system developed specifically for spelling Taiwanese. There were also many books published during that time. In fact, one of the best Taiwanese dictionaries of all time is “台日大辭典” (Taiwanese-Japanese dictionary, 1931), which uses that Kana system. The dictionary was later translated into Taiwanese POJ too, which you can find here: https://taigi.fhl.net/dict/
Some of these traditions, especially POJ + Han characters, continue to be used in writing, and later there’s also the modified version of POJ called Tâi-lô (TL) promoted by the Ministry of Education. All of these are popular among Taiwanese users and learners. I myself often text my friends in Taiwanese.
“台文通訊BONG報” is a Taiwanese language periodical that has been running for 30 years and connects overseas Taiwanese and domestic readers: https://tsbp.tgb.org.tw. They publish articles in POJ, TL and Han characters.
There are also many contemporary Taiwanese writers. Just to give you two names to start with:
- 陳雷 Tân luî (1939-)
He has published a 5-volume short story collection and some novels. Some of them can be found online.
Here is an example of his short stories:
“圖書館ê祕密” (The secret of the library)
This is a political history story about KMT thought police in disguise of a teen romance.
Tân luî also wrote a 400-page roman-fleuve-style novel in Taiwanese entitled “鄉史補記” (2008). The storyline starts from an indigenous family in late-18th century Taiwan and runs to the late-20th century.
- 陳明仁 Tân Bîng-jîn (1954-)
His 6-volume “拋荒的故事” (2012) is a collection of “nostalgic” stories, with audio and annotations for learners.
Here is a sample from the publisher:
His “路樹下 ê tō͘-peh-á” (2007), on the other hand, includes more modern stories and plays.
New TV shows, music, books, podcasts, Youtube videos in Taiwanese keep coming out. There’s even a 3rd (or maybe 4th) Taiwanese translation of “Little Prince” that has just been published and topped Taiwan’s book market this year.
Whether a language is “useful” or “relevant” depends on its users. We as speakers are not passive. We can shape how the language is used. While speaking or writing in the language, we create resources and infuse it with a modern touch.
For example, at iTaigi, where I’m also a volunteer, we are creating this Urban Dictionary-like platform for people to search, contribute, and up/down vote new words and expressions. You can even find Taiwanese names of Pokemon and terms for fintech like “Bitcoin” or “blockchain”. I used to organize word-of-the-day posts with recordings on iTaigi’s Facebook & Youtube to teach words and some bits of linguistic knowledge.
Now I’m more busy with other projects, but we have seen more and more pages on social media using Taiwanese.
Some more examples, if you are interested:
世界台 (Sè-kài tâi): 周盈成 (Tsiu Îng-sîng) created this column, where he wrote about and read international news in Taiwanese: https://pnn.pts.org.tw/type/detail/942
He has stopped updating it, but currently he is translating George Orwell’s 1984 into Taiwanese:
Bite-size Taiwanese: I work with Phil Lin and Alan Chen at Bite-size Taiwanese (http://bitesizetaiwanese.com) to create podcasts and learning materials targeting at foreign audiences and heritage speakers.
There are also people who write about modern science in Taiwanese, like this blog:
This is just a snapshot of how the language can be and is currently being used.
Utilitarian views of language aside, language is also identity, memories, well-being and freedom. Every language has its own culture and own beauty. For me that’s a good enough reason to learn and pass on a language.
I’ve recently read this nice article about first/native/heritage language by a Czech-Canadian linguist: http://nautil.us/issue/30/identity/the-strange-persistence-of-first-languages
It incorporates some solid science bits with moving personal stories that everybody can relate to. I think it is worth reading for all the polyglots and will probably hit close to home for some of you.
I also see speaking indigenous languages or the language of one’s choice as a basic right, just like freedom of speech and expression. Since Taiwan’s National languageS Development Act (https://law.moj.gov.tw/ENG/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?pcode=H0170143) has been enacted, the idea of Mandarin being THE national language (singular) of Taiwan has been questioned more and more.
I wish Taiwanese speakers would really think about why and when they choose not to speak Taiwanese (to children, in public, at court, etc) even when they practically can.
I really encourage all Taiwanese & Hokkien users to speak more, and learn how to read and write. I’m sure it will open many doors.
My Hokkien-speaking friends from Johor think it’s hilarious and are always like lol this kl kia;;; where tf are u actually from???
