Did you know that there are actually two forms of written Chinese - simplified and traditional? 

We're bringing you a schoolin' lesson this week (while we teach ourselves too lol), diving into the differences between simplified and traditional Chinese. We take a look at the history of the divergence between the two forms, from the origins of simplified Chinese and han yu pin yin (aka the phonetic system used to "spell" out Chinese with English letters), to how current students learn the language depending on the Chinese-speaking region they grew up in. We also examine the differences in usage, distribution, and structure of the written language itself. 

For the fortune cookie sweet treat, we end the episode by sharing what we think are the strangest simplified Chinese characters compared to their original (traditional) forms.

Ready for your weekly lesson?