Culture 5
Learning Chinese: culture — Unit 5
The dialogue of Unit 5 deals with nationalities and languages. It is an opportunity to understand how the Chinese name their country, how country names are formed in Chinese, and to discover the use of the polite form 您 nín.
1. The different words for talking about China
In English, we have only one word: "China". In Chinese, there are several, each carrying a different nuance:
中国 Zhōngguó — literally "the Middle Kingdom". It is the official and most common name. 中 zhōng means "middle, center" and 国 guó means "country". This name reflects the traditional view according to which China considered itself the center of the civilized world, surrounded by peripheral peoples.
You also come across:
- 中华 Zhōnghuá — "the splendor of the middle". A more literary and solemn term, used in the official name of the People's Republic of China: 中华人民共和国 Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó.
- 华 huá — often used to refer to overseas Chinese (华人 huárén) or Chinese culture in general.
Finally, the common word for saying "country" in Chinese is 国家 guójiā. This word is composed of 国 guó (country, State) and 家 jiā (family, household). "Country" is therefore literally said as "State-family". This is no accident: in Chinese culture, the country is perceived as an extension of the family. Just as one is loyal and devoted to one's family, one is so toward one's country.
This emotional bond between the nation and the family explains the pride and attachment that many Chinese feel toward their country. It also explains a question that Westerners in China hear very often:
你喜欢中国吗？ Nǐ xǐhuan Zhōngguó ma ? — "Do you like China?"
This question, asked with a mix of curiosity and pride, is very common. It may surprise a Westerner — one can hardly imagine asking a Chinese tourist in London: "Do you like England?" But in China, it is a natural gesture: you are welcomed into the "big family" and they hope you feel good there.
There is only one good answer to this question: 喜欢！ Xǐhuan ! — "Yes, I love it!". Saying that you do not like China, or even answering in a nuanced way, would be perceived as an offense — a bit like a guest telling their hosts that they do not like their house. Answer with enthusiasm, and you will see your interlocutor's face light up.
2. The different names of the Chinese language
The Chinese language itself has several names, and the difference between them is not just a matter of vocabulary — it reflects the linguistic history of China:
中文 Zhōngwén — literally "the writing of the middle" or "the written language of China". The character 文 wén here refers to writing, to lettered culture.
This term has a particular historical significance. For millennia, China was a country of great linguistic diversity: inhabitants of different regions spoke — and still speak — mutually unintelligible spoken languages (Cantonese, Wu, Min, Hakka, etc.). But all shared a common written language : the 文言 wényán, or "classical Chinese".
The 文言 was a purely written language, used in administration, literature, philosophy and official exchanges. A scholar from Canton and a scholar from Beijing did not understand each other orally, but could communicate without difficulty in writing thanks to the 文言. It is this shared written language that ensured the cultural unity of China through the centuries.
The term 中文 thus refers to this reality: the language of all of China, the one that transcends regional oral differences through writing. Today, 中文 generally refers to the Chinese language as a whole (written and spoken).
汉语 Hànyǔ — the language of the Han, the majority ethnic group (92% of the population). The character 语 yǔ refers to the spoken language. This term therefore emphasizes the oral dimension and specifically identifies the language of the Han ethnicity, as opposed to the languages of the 55 other ethnic minorities of China.
You also come across:
- 普通话 Pǔtōnghuà — the "common language", that is, standard Mandarin. It is the official language taught in schools and used in the media. It was promoted in the 20th century to unify oral communication throughout the country.
- 汉字 Hànzì — the "characters of the Han", that is, the Chinese characters themselves.
- 中文 = the Chinese language in general (written + spoken) — historically linked to the common written language.
- 汉语 = the spoken language of the Han — emphasizes the oral.
- 普通话 = standard Mandarin — the modern official norm.
3. How are country names formed in Chinese?
Country names in Chinese are purely phonetic transcriptions. The process is as follows: you choose Chinese characters whose pronunciation is close to the country's original name, then you contract this transcription, often keeping only the first character, to which you add 国 guó (country).
- France → 法兰西 Fǎlánxī (transcription of "France") → contracted to 法国 Fǎguó
- England → 英格兰 Yīnggélán (transcription of "England") → contracted to 英国 Yīngguó
- America → 美利坚 Měilìjiān (transcription of "America") → contracted to 美国 Měiguó
- Deutschland → 德意志 Déyìzhì (transcription of "Deutschland") → contracted to 德国 Déguó
It is often read that 法国 means "the country of the law", 美国 "the beautiful country" or 英国 "the heroic country". It is an amusing coincidence, but this is not the original meaning.
The characters 法, 美, 英, 德 certainly have their own meaning in Chinese (law, beautiful, heroic, virtue), but they were not chosen for this meaning. They were chosen only because their pronunciation matches the first syllable of the complete phonetic transcription. The fact that these characters have a positive meaning is a happy coincidence — the Chinese naturally preferring "auspicious" characters when they had the choice.
Careful, not all country names follow this model. Japan is said 日本 Rìběn ("origin of the sun"), which is a translation of the meaning and not a phonetic transcription. Spain is said 西班牙 Xībānyá (complete phonetic transcription, without contraction with 国).
To express nationality, you simply add 人 rén (person) after the country name:
中国人 a Chinese person, 法国人 a French person, 美国人 an American.
4. The use of 您 nín
In the dialogue, Bai Xue uses 您 nín to address teacher Li: 您是中国人吗？ — "Are you Chinese?"
您 is the respectful form of 你 nǐ (you). It is used to mark respect toward one's interlocutor, notably:
- toward the elderly ;
- toward the hierarchical superiors (teacher, boss, etc.);
- in formal contexts (official meeting, business, service);
- toward the strangers out of politeness.
The character 您 is composed of 你 (you) topped by 心 ( heart ). One thus addresses a "you" with the heart — a beautiful image of respect in the Chinese language.
您 is mainly used in the north of China, and particularly in Beijing, where its use is very common in everyday life. In the south, it is less frequent in speech, but remains understood and appreciated everywhere.
There is no common plural form of 您. We will say 你们 nǐmen (you) even in a formal context, although 您们 exists marginally.