Working With Diversity, Northern Ireland Section 75 Equality Scheme Advice

Cantonese:	Relates to people from Hong Kong China, Kwantung Province of China and, the New Territories.
Hakka:	Largely spoken dialect of the New Territories. This is spoken by most elderly Chinese living in Northern Ireland.
Mandarin:	The first language spoken by people originating in China and Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore.(The official Chinese language).

The structure of the Chinese language is totally different to that of European languages. Most Chinese words have only one syllable as opposed to European words that can have many syllables. Each word can be pronounced in four different tones in Mandarin and nine tones in Cantonese, which gives a different meaning to a word. There are many spoken dialects among the Chinese community. Mandarin is the 'national language' in China, but for people from Hong Kong, Kwangtung Province and Macau, Cantonese is the main dialect.

In a recent survey,(Childcare Needs of the Chinese Community with Children Under 12 Living in the EHSSB Area, EHSSB and Barnardos Chinese Health Project (1999/2000), p34) conducted by Eastern Health and Social Services Board and Barnardos, 82.2% of respondents named Cantonese as their first language. The second most common language was Hakka, and the third was Mandarin.

Although there are different spoken dialects within the Chinese community, there are two forms of written Chinese, namely, Classical (or complex) Chinese and Simplified Chinese. People from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore still use the Classical (Complex) form of Chinese writing, whereas in the rest of the People's Republic of China, a simplified form, introduced in the early 20 th century through the 'New Language Movement' as part of the Chinese Revolution after 1911 is used.

The way that Chinese words are constructed is completely different from the way words are constructed in English. Many Chinese people struggle to learn English. They are faced with learning a different way of forming words and with learning an entirely different way of constructing sentences.

Many Chinese parents regard it as very important that their child acquires a good command of Chinese because they see it as a way to retain Chinese culture and identity. Therefore they will encourage or even force their children to attend Chinese classes.

In Belfast there are two Chinese schools. One is run under the auspices of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Classes are held during term times on Sunday afternoons (in Cantonese and Mandarin). They have about 200 students attending classes. The Chinese Christian Church runs Chinese classes on Saturday mornings. They have about 80 students. Both these schools teach in Cantonese.

Many Chinese people (mostly first generation) in Northern Ireland cannot speak or read any English. This is especially true of those who work in the catering trade or are housebound, elderly and housewives. It is equally true to say that some Chinese people cannot read and write the Chinese language.

The language barrier affects every single part of their lives. They often struggle when going shopping, going to the post office, dealing with their bank, accessing healthcare or even applying for welfare.

It is not uncommon for a language barrier to develop between parents and their children. For example, if the Chinese parents work unsociable hours, as in the catering trade, they may have their children minded by English-speaking people. The Chinese children then pick up English, and Western Culture from a young age and many parents begin to regard their own children as 'Gwai Chai'or Western children who have no grasp of the Chinese language or no understanding of Chinese culture and identity.

On the other hand, the children may lose respect for their parents because they don't understand why they have chosen to come and live in a country where they appear not to have the language skills necessary to cope. This naturally leads to a lot of tension in the family.