ST Forum > Online Story
March 17, 2007
Dialect has made Singapore Chinese culture rich and colourful, but
it is at risk of dying out
I HAD the privilege of growing up speaking English, Mandarin and
dialect. However, dialect (meaning spoken Chinese or fangyan) is at
risk of dying out and little is done to conserve and promote this
integral part of local Chinese ethnicity.
If conservation of historical sites is given immense support
because they are important to local culture, more should be done
for dialect. Dialect has profoundly influenced local Chinese
culture in numerous ways. From our dialect-inspired dishes to
native lingo, dialect has made Singapore Chinese culture so rich
and colourful.
As a mother, I am concerned that the global blah of TV, fast food,
Internet and so on is diluting the appreciation of our roots. The
local situation is worsened with increasingly more children raised
by foreign maids. Local children are sent to countless enrichment
classes for advancement, but given little time to learn their
cultural heritage. We cannot stop modernisation, yet it is eroding
local Chinese ethnicity rapidly. Many minority dialects here have
dwindled or are already completely lost.
Beyond teaching our children intellectual cultural knowledge,
simple dialect-speaking helps identify one's roots immediately.
Dialect is fundamental to Chinese heritage. When I started speaking
dialect to my daughter, she instinctively connected herself to our
family roots. Previously, our cultural roots were just 'head
knowledge' to her. Now, she is proud that her father is Hainanese
and her mother is Cantonese. She appreciates how fascinating her
family history is.
Dialect links us to our roots. Many young local Chinese do not
know, or even care, which dialect group they belong to. We should
still use English and Mandarin language, but dialect-speaking
should not be forgotten in the process. Many Chinese do not
communicate in dialect to their young anymore. If something is not
done to promote dialect, local Chinese culture will have little
profundity eventually.
Dialect is a beautiful aspect of Chinese culture. It is not a
language for the 'old' or 'uncouth'. The next generation needs to
see the value of dialect - it delves into our roots and reveals a
bigger picture of ourselves.
Can dialect survive by itself in Singapore? Like environmental
conservation, more must be done before it is too late. Everyone has
a part to play. Perhaps because we are a majority ethnic group, we
think dialect will thrive naturally. Unfortunately, it will not. We
do not want to wait till the last breathe of dialect is spoken to
realise what is authentic to us is truly lost.
Joanna Chan Yea Ling (Mdm)
