Chinese Language

Written Chinese can be divided into three variants: simplified Mandarin, traditional Mandarin and traditional Cantonese; used in mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong respectively. The three are for the most part mutually intelligible, but it is a fallacy that all Chinese speakers use exactly the same written language.

When writing customer-facing or mission-critical communications it is essential to acknowledge the differences and use linguists who are native to the target market. If an English text needs to be translated into two Chinese variants, the best results will be achieved by using a separate translator and editor for each variant.

Where budget constraints prevent this, it is possible to produce the simplified Mandarin version first, and then convert the characters to traditional. The resulting traditional Chinese text can then be edited by a Taiwan or Hong Kong editor who amends the vocabulary and turn of phrase in order to optimise the second variant for its target market. The process can be reversed, i.e. producing the traditional version first, followed by the simplified.

China’s historical diversity

- Mainland China is larger than the whole of Europe, and its spoken languages vary almost as much as those of the European Union. China is home to eight mutually unintelligible spoken Chinese dialects, but the country shares one official national language – Mandarin.

- China has a complex political and cultural history, and this variety continues to the present day. Mainland China has seen a communist revolution, while its last 25 years have seen unparalleled economic development. Hong Kong has recently returned to China after over a century of British colonial occupation, and Taiwan has had its own government since its liberation from the Japanese in 1945, yet is still regarded as a part of China by its Nationalist Party and the mainland.

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