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Hakka - An Important Element of Chinese Culture

[BIODATA] [HAKKA] [KUALA KANGSAR]

[HISTORY OF HAKKA] [HAKKA FOOD] [HAKKA SONG]


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The Origin Of Hakka

According to the well-known Chinese dictionary, Hakkas are inhabitants at the junction of Guangdong, Fujian, and Jiangxi. Others have settled in Sichuan and Taiwan. They are a group entering the southern provinces after Jin dynasty. Hakkas are characteristic of hardworking people and their spoken language can find roots in ancient classical Chinese. The term "Hakka" was not originally a designation for a certain ethnic group living in a particular area. When the term "Hakka" first appeared in household registries during the Song Dynasty, it was used to indicate "guests" who had left their homelands to settle down in other parts of the country, in contrast to residents originally from the area. Although evidence is sketchy, the Hakkas are thought to originate from the lands bordering the Huang River (Yellow River) or Shanxi, Henan, and Hubei Provinces of the Northern China of today. To escape calamity, they would later flee southward traveling through many lands. They eventually settled down in the Jiangxi, Fujian, and Guangdong Provinces. Referred to by locals as "Hakka" or "guests", the Hakkas appeared on the world stage for the first time.

The term 'Hakka' or 'Hak Ga' comprises of two words, meaning, Hak='guest' and Ga='family'. The term 'guest families' referw to the Hakka people because of documented evidence of a history of migration. Studies of family genealogies show that the ancestors of the original Hakka, were residents of the Great Central Plains of Eastern China, around the Yellow River basin about two millenia ago.

A Brief Introduction to Hakka Dialect

There are seven major dialects in China; they are Guan-hua, Gan, Wu, Xiang, Min, Yue and Ke. Ke is also known as the Hakka dialect. The characteristics of Hakka people is they all claim to be Chinese and there is no provincial difference to divide them. All those who are fortunate to still master the tongue would find a lot of "Tziga Ngin"(our own people) anywhere in China. Hakka dialect (language) is the thread that holds people together.
Onsets:
  • Voiced consonant "v" is preserved, which is a feature developed during the Sung dynasty.
  • Plosive "p" is preserved in some characters, while modern Chinese uses fricative "f".
  • Nasal "ng" is preserved, which is also developed during the Sung dynasty.
  • Some Zhi-group characters are still pronounced with dental plosive onsets, while modern Chinese pronounces them with fricatives.
  • Characters with velar onset like "k", when followed by high vowel "i", are still pronounced the same as ancient Chinese. In modern Chinese, they are replaced by alveolar onset.
Vowels:
  • High rounded vowel ("yu in Mandarin") does not exist in Hakka, since it appears in Chinese during the Ming dynasty.
  • Characteristic of Zhi-zhao third level characters in ancient Chinese still exist in some Hakka subdialects like Da-pu in the form of "i" as part of the diphthong of the characters.
Codas:
  • Nasals "m", "n", and "ng" are mostly preserved, except "ing" and "eng", which are pronounced "in" and "en" in Hakka.
  • Stops "p", "t", and "k" are mostly preserved, except "ik" and "ek", which are pronounced "it" and "et" in Hakka.
Examples of Hakka language:

Hakka English Example/Explanation
ngai I /me [ngai2]
ngi you [ngi2]
ki he/she [ki2]
ngai-teu we/us [ngai2 teu1; nga1 teu1]
ngi-teu you all [ngia1 teu1]
ki-teu they [kia1 teu1]
nga my ancient Chinese word[nga1]
Ah pa father [a1 pa1]
ah mak mother [a1 ma1]
ah kung grandfather [a1 kung1]
ah po grandmother [a1 pho2]
choing sim pi sim use heart to compare heart []
thien ti ngin sky earth man []
thai big [thai3]
se small [se5]
seu smile [siau5]
se moi young lady [se5 moi5 = girl]
lo moi younger sister [lau3 moi5]
lo tai younger brother [lau3 thai1]
lo ko older brother [lau3 ko1 = lad]

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