Download or read book The Chinese Language written by John DeFrancis and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 1986-03-01 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "DeFrancis's book is first rate. It entertains. It teaches. It demystifies. It counteracts popular ignorance as well as sophisticated (cocktail party) ignorance. Who could ask for anything more? There is no other book like it. ... It is one of a kind, a first, and I would not only buy it but I would recommend it to friends and colleagues, many of whom are visiting China now and are adding 'two-week-expert' ignorance to the two kinds that existed before. This is a book for everyone." --Joshua A. Fishman, research professor of social sciences, Yeshiva University, New York "Professor De Francis has produced a work of great effectiveness that should appeal to a wide-ranging audience. It is at once instructive and entertaining. While being delighted by the flair of his novel approach, the reader will also be led to ponder on some of the most fundamental problems concerning the relations between written languages and spoken languages. Specifically, he will be served a variety of information on the languages of East Asia, not as dry pedantic facts, but as appealing tidbits that whet the intellectual appetite. The expert will find much to reflect on in this book, for Professor DeFrancis takes nothing for granted." --William S.Y. Wang, professor of linguistics, University of California at Berkeley

Download or read book Hacking Chinese written by Olle Linge and published by . This book was released on 2016-03-26 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Learning Chinese can be frustrating and difficult, partly because it's very different from European languages. Following a teacher, textbook or language course is not enough. They show you the characters, words and grammar you need to become proficient in Chinese, but they don't teach you how to learn them! Regardless of what program you're in (if any), you need to take responsibility for your own learning. If you don't, you will miss many important things that aren't included in the course you're taking. If you study on your own, you need to be even more aware of what you need to do, what you're doing at the moment and the difference between them. Here are some of the questions I have asked and have since been asked many times by students: How do I learn characters efficiently? How do I get the most out of my course or teacher? Which are the best learning tools and resources? How can I become fluent in Mandarin? How can I improve my pronunciation? How do I learn successfully on my own? How can I motivate myself to study more? How can I fit learning Chinese into a busy schedule? The answers I've found to these questions and many others form the core of this book. It took eight years of learning, researching, teaching and writing to figure these things out. Not everybody has the time to do that! I can't go back in time and help myself learn in a better way, but I can help you! This book is meant for normal students and independent language learners alike. While it covers all major areas of learning, you won't learn Chinese just by reading this book. It's like when someone on TV teaches you how to cook: you won't get to eat the delicious dish just by watching the program; you have to do the cooking yourself. That's true for this book as well. When you apply what you learn, it will boost your learning, making every hour you spend count for more, but you still have to do the learning yourself. This is what a few readers have said about the book: "The book had me nodding at a heap of things I'd learnt the hard way, wishing I knew them when I started, as well as highlighting areas that I'm currently missing in my study." - Geoff van der Meer, VP engineering "This publication is like a bible for anyone serious about Chinese proficiency. It's easy for anyone to read and written with scientific precision." - Zachary Danz, foreign teacher, children's theatre artist About me I started learning Chinese when I was 23 (that's more than eight years ago now) and have since studied in many different situations, including serious immersion programs abroad, high-intensity programs in Sweden, online courses, as well as on the side while working or studying other things. I have also successfully used my Chinese in a graduate program for teaching Chinese as a second language, taught entirely in Chinese mostly for native speakers (the Graduate Institute for Teaching Chinese as a Second Language at National Taiwan Normal University). All these parts have contributed to my website, Hacking Chinese, where I write regularly about how to learn Mandarin.

Download or read book A Phonological History of Chinese written by Zhongwei Shen and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-06-04 with total page 441 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A one-stop, comprehensive account of the key developments in the phonological history of Chinese.

Download or read book Lexicon of Reconstructed Pronunciation written by Edwin G. Pulleyblank and published by UBC Press. This book was released on 1991-06-01 with total page 504 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Known for his pioneering work in Chinese historical phonetics, Edwin Pulleyblank has compiled this Lexicon to present in convenient dictionary form the result of his researches on the phonology of Middle Chinese and its evolution to Mandarin. The Lexicon complements Pulleyblank's earlier book, Middle Chinese, by providing reconstructed pronunciation for approximately 8,000 Chinese characters at three historical stages. Early Middle Chinese is the language of the Qieyun rhyme dictionary of AD 601, which codified the standard literary language of both North and South China the preceding period of division. Pulleyblank's reconstruction is a thorough reworking of that of Bernhard Karlgren, completed in the twenties, and in some respects differs radically from it. Late Middle Chinese is the standard language of the High Tang Dynasty, based on the dialect of the capital, Chang'an. It has not been reconstructed previously as a separate stage but is of special importance, since it is the ancestor of most modern dialects. Early Mandarin represents the speech of the Yuan capital, Dadu (present Beijing), around the year 1300, for which Pulleyblank's reconstruction differs considerably from that of Hugh M. Stimson. The sources and methods used in these reconstructions were fully discussed in Middle Chinese, but recent developments in phonological theory have led to some modifications in detail. The entries are arranged alphabetically according to the Pinyin system with an index, by the traditional Kangxi radical and stroke numbers. The Morohashi number is also given for each character, enabling easy reference to this important Chinese thesaurus. Another useful feature of the Lexicon is the inclusion of the numbers in Karlgren's Grammata Serica for characters that are included in that work. Concise English equivalents for the Chinese words are also provided. Reconstructed forms are given in the International Phonetic Alphabet. Though this requires a number of phonetic signs and diacritical marks, these are carefully explained in the introduction. Every effort has been made to provide a useful tool for students of Chinese literature and China's relations with foreign countries, as well as for specialists in Chinese linguistics.

Download or read book Basic Spoken Chinese Practice Essentials written by Cornelius C. Kubler and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11-27 with total page 672 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Use this one-of-a-kind practice guide together with any Chinese book or language program, and dramatically enhance your speaking and listening skills. No matter what book or course you're using to learn Chinese, it takes a lot of practice. Here is a wealth of effective practice activities--including more than 16 hours of audio material!--to help polish your spoken Mandarin Chinese. This book corresponds to Basic Spoken Chinese and allows you to move from complete beginner level to basic proficiency. Downloadable content features over 16 hours of audio material, as well as (printable) PDF files of hundreds of additional practice pages and exercises. Basic Spoken Chinese Practice Essentials includes carefully designed activities to help solidify every aspect of your spoken Chinese skills, including: Pronunciation exercises. Vocabulary and Grammar summaries. Substitution drills. Transformation and Response drills. Role Play & Listening Comprehension exercises. Dictation exercises. Translation exercises. The downloadable content contains: 16 hours of audio by native Mandarin speakers. Printable practice pages. Printable exercises and activities. Together with or after this book, you can use Basic Written Chinese if you want to learn Chinese reading and writing. It introduces the highest-frequency characters and words in a systematic way. About the Series Respected Chinese language expert Dr. Cornelius Kubler, who has taught diplomats, business people and students, presents a learning system that uses separate but integrated "tracks" to help you efficiently master the basics of spoken and written Chinese. The materials in the Basic Spoken Chinese series allow you to move from complete beginner level to intermediate fluency.

Download or read book Chinese English Contrastive Grammar written by David C. S. Li and published by Hong Kong University Press. This book was released on 2017-07-03 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The main objective of Chinese-English Contrastive Grammar: An Introduction is to familiarize the reader with a subset of the learning difficulties and common errors in ESL/EFL pronunciation and lexico-grammatical structures encountered by Chinese learners and users of English, in Hong Kong and beyond. It also helps readers understand some of the ways in which the Chinese language has undergone structural change as a result of Europeanization. The book begins with a review of Cantonese-English contrastive phonology and is followed by a detailed analysis of lexico-grammatical deviations found among Chinese ESL/EFL learners. It concludes with a brief history of the Europeanization of the Chinese language and a discussion of commonly encountered lingua-cultural problems encountered by Chinese users of English in intercultural communication settings. This book is written primarily for teachers and students specializing in language-related disciplines. Scholars who wish to understand the acquisitional challenges for Chinese students in the process of learning English as an additional language will also find the book an informative reference. ‘David C. S. Li and Zoe Pei-sui Luk’s brand new introduction to Chinese-English contrastive grammar covers a number of key topics and comes with copious data, abundant exemplification, and in-depth analyses. A must-read for all who are interested in the similarities and differences between the two languages, and why.’ —K. K. Luke, Nanyang Technological University ‘This is a book which has long been needed. Drawing on their own research and teaching experience, the authors have produced a linguistically accurate and insightful, but also very readable book. It should be required reading for language teachers in Hong Kong and the Greater China region.’ —Stephen Matthews, University of Hong Kong

Download or read book Learning Mandarin Chinese Characters Volume 1 written by Yi Ren and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2017-02-28 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reinforce your written Chinese with this practice book for the best-selling Tuttle Learning Chinese Characters. Learning Mandarin Chinese Characters helps students quickly learn the essential Chinese characters that are fundamental to the language. This character workbook presents 178 Chinese characters and over 534 standard words using these characters. It is intended for self-study and classroom use and includes the characters and words students need to know if they plan to take the official Chinese government HSK Level 1 Exam or the Advanced Placement (AP) Chinese Language and Culture Exam. Each character is presented plainly and transparently. A step-by-step diagram shows how to write the character, and boxes are provided for freehand writing practice. The meaning and pronunciation are given along with the critical vocabulary compounds and an example sentence. Review exercises reinforce the learning process, and an index at the back allows you to look up the characters according to their English meanings or romanized Hanyu Pinyin pronunciation. Key features of this Chinese workbook include: Designed for HSK Level 1 and AP exam prep Learn the 178 most essential Chinese characters Example sentences and over 534 vocabulary items Step-by-step writing diagrams and practice boxes

Download or read book Basic Mandarin Chinese Speaking Listening Textbook written by Cornelius C. Kubler and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2017-11-17 with total page 697 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ING_08 Review quote

Download or read book Chinese Primer written by Ta-tuan Ch'en and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 1994-02-27 with total page 150 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Four experienced teachers of beginning Chinese have developed this introductory textbook. A pilot edition has been tested widely in classrooms and refined over a period of years. Among its salient features are lessons that are lively, amusing, and relevant to everyday life: concentrated training of ear and tongue in the sound system of Chinese; extensive grammar notes, clearly presented, with attention to mistakes English-speakers are likely to make; a carefully sequenced character workbook embodying a new and effective approach to the learning of Chinese characters; and audiovisual reinforcement via a complete set of audiotapes and two videotapes, one of which offers entertaining dramatizations of the lesson dialogues. The Chinese Primer is available in two versions, one using the GR system of romanization, which employs different spellings instead of diacritical marks for different tones, the other using Pinyin romanization. The contents of the four volumes are as follows: (1) Blue Book [Lessons]: Introduction; foundation work on pronunciation; lesson dialogues in romanized Chinese and English; appendices; glossary-index. (2) Red Book [Notes and Exercises]: Vocabularies; grammar notes and culture notes keyed to the lessons; exercises. (3) Yellow Book [Character Workbook]: workbook. (4) Green Book [ Pinyin Character Text ]: Texts of the lessons in both traditional and simplified Chinese characters, and a Chinese introduction for teachers. The first three volumes: Blue Book, Red Book, and Yellow Book are sold as a set (GR Set or Pinyin Set). In addition, the GR Blue Book [Lessons], GR Red Book [Notes and Exercises], and GR Yellow Book [Character Workbook], along with the Pinyin Green Book [ Pinyin Character Text ] are sold separately. The GR Audio and video materials are available from the Chinese Linguistics Project at Princeton University for use with this text. These supplementary materials are not published by Princeton University Press. For further information and prices, contact the Chinese Linguistics Project, 231 Palmer Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, N.J. 08544. (609-258-4269).

Download or read book Chinese written by Chaofen Sun and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2006-09-04 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Chinese is spoken by more people than any other language in the world, and has a rich social, cultural and historical background. This book is a comprehensive guide to the linguistic structure of Chinese, providing an accessible introduction to each of the key areas. It describes the fundamentals of its writing system, its pronunciation and tonal sound system, its morphology (how words are structured), and its syntax (how sentences are formed) - as well as its historical development, and the diverse ways in which it interacts with other languages. Setting the discussion of all aspects of Chinese firmly within the context of the language in use, Chinese: A Linguistic Introduction will be of great benefit to learners wishing to extend their knowledge and competence in the language, and their teachers. It will also be a useful starting point for students of linguistics beginning work on the structure of this major world language.

Download or read book Chinese Grammar Wiki Book written by John Pasden and published by . This book was released on 2018-03-08 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These are the basic 26 grammar points a beginner needs to master in order to start using and comprehending Mandarin Chinese. The AllSet Learning Grammar Wiki BOOK series brings to ebook format everything that made the online wiki the internet's #1 reference for Mandarin Chinese grammar: - Beginner's Guide introduction provided as a starting point - Each of 26 grammar points has been carefully selected for beginners - Each grammar point is explained in plain language, dropping technical grammatical terms whenever possible - At least 10 clear, useful example sentences for each grammar point, accompanied with pinyin and English translations - Common mistakes with corrections provided where relevant - Related grammar points are all interlinked, allowing learners to form connections between similar grammar points - The book's content was produced by the AllSet Learning staff in Shanghai, representing dozens of contributors (both native speakers of Chinese and leaners of Chinese) - Foreword by linguist Dr. David Moser, author of the well-known "Why Chinese is So Damn Hard" - All content edited by John Pasden, seasoned expert in Chinese learning The 26 grammar points contained in this book are also contained in the longer "Elementary" book; this book is intended as a shorter introduction for beginners who are just looking for a taste in the Chinese Grammar Wiki's friendly format.

Download or read book Basic Mandarin Chinese Reading Writing Textbook written by Cornelius C. Kubler and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2017-11-14 with total page 577 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ING_08 Review quote

Download or read book Colloquial Chinese written by Qian Kan and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-08-27 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Colloquial Chinese: The Complete Course for Beginners has been carefully developed by an experienced teacher to provide a step-by-step course to Chinese as it is written and spoken today. Combining a clear, practical and accessible style with a methodical and thorough treatment of the language, it equips learners with the essential skills needed to communicate confidently and effectively in Chinese in a broad range of situations. No prior knowledge of the language is required. Colloquial Chinese is exceptional; each unit presents a wealth of grammatical points that are reinforced with a wide range of exercises for regular practice. A full answer key, a grammar summary, bilingual glossaries and English translations of dialogues can be found at the back as well as useful vocabulary lists throughout. Key features include: A clear, user-friendly format designed to help learners progressively build up their speaking, listening, reading and writing skills Jargon-free, succinct and clearly structured explanations of grammar An extensive range of focused and dynamic supportive exercises Realistic and entertaining dialogues covering a broad variety of narrative situations Helpful cultural points explaining the customs and features of life in China An overview of the sounds of Chinese Balanced, comprehensive and rewarding, Colloquial Chinese is an indispensable resource both for independent learners and students taking courses in Chinese. Audio material to accompany the course is available to download free in MP3 format from www.routledge.com/cw/colloquials. Recorded by native speakers, the audio material features the dialogues and texts from the book and will help develop your listening and pronunciation skills.

Download or read book Colloquial Chinese written by Bingzheng Tong and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 1982 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: T'ung and Pollard's Colloquial Chinese course is the ideal introductory course for all dedicated learners of Mandarin Chinese. Written by experienced teachers, the course provides a rigorous introduction to the pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar of Mandarin Chinese. By the end of this rewarding course learners will be able to communicate confidently in a wide variety of situations. The solid foundation provided is also ideal for those who wish to advance their language skills to higher levels. Divided into 17 lessons, each lesson contains conversations based on common daily situations, vocabularies, grammar notes and exercises to help learn and practice basic skills. Key features include: clear grammar explanations lots of exercises for regular practice Pinyin Romanization used throughout Chinese-English glossary for quick reference. Accompanying audio material is available to purchase separately or comes included in the great value Colloquial paperback and CDs complete course. Recorded by native speakers, the audio complements the book and will help develop your listening and pronunciations skills. Course components: The complete course comprises the book and audio materials. These are available to purchase separately in paperback, ebook, CD and MP3 format. The paperback and CD can also be purchased together in the great-value Colloquials pack. Paperback: 978-0-415-01860-9 (please note this does not include the audio) CD: 978-0-415-52341-7 EBook: 978-0-203-09731-1 (please note this does not include the audio, available from http://www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk) MP3s: 978-0-415-63260-7 (available from http://www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/html/) Pack: 978-0-415-52485-8 (paperback and CDs)

Download or read book I Can Read That written by Julie Sussman and published by China Books. This book was released on 1994 with total page 180 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Note: Teaches simplified characters, used in mainland China--not so useful in Taiwan.

Download or read book written by Harold Shadick and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 1968 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Volume II consists of vocabularies for all of the texts and exercises in Volume I of this work, intended to provide a foundation in the grammar of classical Chinese.

Download or read book Character Text for Beginning Chinese written by John DeFrancis and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 519 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this parallel character version of Beginning Chinese, dialogues, pronunciation drills, sentence-building exercises, substitution drills and memorization exercises correspond to the same lessons Beginning Chinese offers in English and in pinyin romanization of Mandarin.