Native speakers 9.5 million (2007) | ||
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Pronunciation "Bàng-uâ" in different dialects [paŋ˨˩ŋuɑ˨˦˨] (Fuzhou)[paŋ˥ŋuɑ˦˨] (Fuqing)[paŋ˥˦˦ŋua˧˨˦] (Gutian)[paŋ˧˩ŋuɑ˩˧˩] (Matsu)[paŋ˨ɰo˧˧˨] (Ningde)[paŋ˨ɰo˨˧] (Fu'an)[paŋ˨ŋua˨˩˨] (Xiapu)[paŋ˨˩ŋua˨˩˧] (Zherong) Language family Sino-TibetanChineseMinCoastal MinEastern Min Dialects Fuzhou dialectFuqing dialect | ||
Eastern Min, or Min Dong (simplified Chinese: 闽东语; traditional Chinese: 閩東語; pinyin: Mǐndōngyǔ; Foochow Romanized: Mìng-dĕ̤ng-ngṳ̄), is a branch of the Min group of varieties of Chinese. The prestige form and most-cited representative form is the Fuzhou dialect, the speech of the capital and largest city of Fujian.
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China and Taiwan
Eastern Min varieties are mainly spoken in the eastern part of Fujian Province in People's Republic of China, in and near the cities of Fuzhou and Ningde. They are also widely encountered as the mother tongue on the Matsu Islands, Republic of China. Additionally, the inhabitants of Taishun and Cangnan to the north of Fujian in Zhejiang also speak Eastern Min varieties. Eastern Min generally coexists with the official standard Chinese in all these areas.
America
As the coastal area of Fujian has been the historical homeland of a large worldwide diaspora of overseas Chinese, varieties of Eastern Min can also be found across the world, especially in their respective Chinatowns. Cities with high concentrations of such immigrants include New York City, especially Little Fuzhou, Manhattan; Sunset Park, Brooklyn; and Flushing, Queens.
Europe
They are also found in various Chinatown communities in Europe, including London, Paris, and Prato in Italy.
East Asia
Chinese communities within Ikebukuro, Tokyo, Japan as well as Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia have significant populations of Eastern Min speakers. Fuzhou communities can also be found in Sitiawan, Perak and Yong Peng, Johor in West Malaysia.
Branches and influences
The Eastern Min group is conventionally divided into three branches:
- Houguan dialect subgroup (侯官片), including the Fuzhou dialect, Fuqing dialect, Lianjiang dialect and the dialect of the Matsu Islands.
- Funing dialect subgroup (福寧片), including the Ningde dialect and the Fu'an dialect.
- Manjiang dialect (蠻講), spoken in parts of Taishun and Cangnan, Wenzhou, Zhejiang.
Besides these three branches, some dialect islands in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong were classified as Eastern Min. Zhongshan Min is a group of Min varieties spoken in the Zhongshan county of Guangdong. According to Nicholas Bodman, only the Longdu dialect and Nanlang dialect belong to the Eastern Min group, while the Sanxiang dialect belongs to Southern Min.