Chatty Cantonese | 粵語白白講

This episode features part two of our conversation with YouTuber and blogger Brittany Chan. She shares some of her goals for studying Cantonese, as well as a few of her favorite resources for learning the language.

Link to vocabulary and transcript

Links to resources mentioned in this episode: 

• Hambaanglaang
• InspirLang
• 不浪漫故事 Not a Romantic Story
• 樂霖
• Poetic Cantonese
• Boba Break Cantonese
• Cantonese Chrome Extension
• Linguistic Society of Hong Kong
• https://jyutping.org/
• https://www.cantonesewithbrittany.com
• Brittany’s YouTube channel
• 時事一週 (BBC news in Cantonese)
• SBS 廣東話節目 (SBS news in Cantonese)

The first part of a two-part conversation with YouTuber and blogger Brittany Chan, who creates content about overseas Chinese communities and studying Cantonese. Topics discussed include what first inspired her to begin making videos, as well as the community that has supported her along the way.

Link to transcript and vocabulary
Brittany's YouTube channel

Most students of Cantonese have probably encountered different pronunciations when it comes to words beginning with an "n" or "l" sound. Why is that? In this episode, Raymond and Cameron take on variations in Cantonese pronunciation and talk about why flexibility can be your greatest friend.

Link to vocabulary and transcript

Everyone seems to be a fan of something, but how do you talk about it in Cantonese? This week, Raymond tells Cameron about a few ways that Hongkongers have talked about being a fan across the decades, along with some newer developments in the age of MIRROR.

Link to vocabulary and transcript

The second half of a two-part conversation with Professor John Wakefield, this episode focuses on his linguistic research and thoughts on how Cantonese has evolved in recent decades. Professor Wakefield also discusses his 2019 edited volume Cantonese as a Second Language: Issues, Experiences and Suggestions for Teaching and Learning.

Other resources mentioned in this episode:
ViuTV YouTube Channel
Cantonese.tools

This week's guest is John Wakefield, an Associate Professor at Hong Kong Baptist University and a veteran Cantonese screen actor. The conversation has been split up into two parts, with this episode focusing on Professor Wakefield's journey learning Cantonese and his experiences in the Hong Kong entertainment industry. Be sure to check the next episode for part two, where he discusses his research interests at greater length.

Some tones in Cantonese can seem very similar to new learners, particularly when they're similar "shapes" (e.g. tones 2 and 5). How can students figure out the difference? Raymond and Cameron share a few quick tricks. 

Raymond and Cameron discuss how Cantopop (Cantonese pop music) can act as a tool for language learning, as well as some of the medium's challenges. As an example, they look at MIRROR's "Ignited" and one of the colloquial expressions from the song: 焫著 (laat3 zoek6).

Link to music video for "Ignited"

Cameron and Raymond continue their conversation with Pearl Low, a Vancouver-based author, artist, and animator, about their experience studying Cantonese as a heritage language. In this segment, Pearl dispels a common myth about Cantonese, and also gives suggestions to younger learners engaging with their heritage language.

To learn more about Pearl's work, check out: https://www.pearllow.com/

Some of the resources Pearl mentions:
1. Pearl's Twitter thread on Cantonese learning resources

2. Subreddit "r/Cantonese"

3. Cantonese with Winnie (YouTube channel)

4. Hanping Cantonese Dictionary

5. Hanping Chinese Camera: Chinese OCR

Also, check out 係咁先啦, the song mentioned by Raymond at the end of this episode.

More info on Cantonese input on iOS.

Cameron and Raymond chat with Pearl Low, a Vancouver-based author, artist, and animator, about their experience studying Cantonese as a heritage language. Pearl shares a number of tips on learning Cantonese in a community-focused way.

To learn more about Pearl's work, check out: https://www.pearllow.com/

Some of the resources Pearl mentions (in this and next episode):
1. Pearl's Twitter thread on Cantonese learning resources

2. Subreddit "r/Cantonese"

3. Cantonese with Winnie (YouTube channel)

4. Hanping Cantonese Dictionary

5. Hanping Chinese Camera: Chinese OCR