Taiwan 2002

		Language
		The National Language Mandarin, the national language of the Republic of China and of the Chinese mainland, is based on the Beijing dialect. Formerly referred to as Official Speech 官話, the Beijing dialect has had approximately 1,000 years of history as the common language of politics and commerce in China, particularly in the North. The Choice of Mandarin The need to establish an official national language was felt as early as the 17th century when the Ching dynasty established a number of "correct pronunciation institutes" to teach standard Beijing pronunciation, particularly in the Cantonese and Fujianese-speaking southern provinces. The success of these schools, however, was extremely limited. The concept of a national language coalesced around 1910. In 1913, the Ministry of Education (MOE) 教育部 convened a Commission on the Unification of Pronunciation 讀音統一會 to establish a standard national tongue. Delegates with linguistic backgrounds from all of China's provinces voted to decide on official pronunciations for each individual Chinese character. Wu Ching-heng 吳敬恆 (also known as Wu Chih-hui 吳稚暉), a philosopher and one of the founders of the ROC, was chosen to direct the task of creating a truly national language that would transcend locality and dialect. The Beijing dialect was the general foundation of the new national language, but features of various local dialects were also incorporated. This hybrid is now known to English speakers as Mandarin. Phonetic Symbols There was a great deal of disagreement as to the best way to notate the sounds of Mandarin. The three main options were modified Chinese characters, a new set of phonetic symbols, and romanization. The system that was eventually adopted and developed was the predecessor of today's Mandarin Phonetic Symbols (MPS) 注音符號. This collection of 39 symbols (later 40) plus four tone marks and a voicing symbol was designed by Chang Ping-lin 章炳麟 (also known as Chang Tai-yen 章太炎). Once the phonetic alphabet was approved and promulgated by the MOE in November 1918, primary school textbooks were required to use it alongside Chinese characters. In April 1919, the MOE formally established the Preparatory Committee for the Unification of the National Language 國語統一籌備委員會. Mandarin became the required language of instruction in elementary and middle schools. Gramophone records recorded by Wang Pu 王璞 in Shanghai and Y.R. Chao 趙元任 in the US in 1920 and 1921 were used as a standard reference for correct pronunciation. The tonal system used was basically that of the Beijing dialect, but originally a fifth tone marker for words pronounced in the "entering" tone of Middle Chinese (i.e., syllables ending in a -p, -t, or -k stop) was added, based on the Nanjing dialect. Since the Beijing dialect had not preserved this distinction for over 500 years, this feature was eliminated in 1924. In 1932, a new system was devised for indicating the tone of a word, and three initials which were not used in standard Beijing dialect were dropped, bringing the total number of MPS to today's 37. Since the Mandarin Phonetic Symbols (MPS) were promulgated by the MOE in November 1918, all ROC primary school students have been required to learn the phonetic alphabet in the first grade. (Courtesy of the K.S.T. Education Corp.) Romanization In 1928, the MOE promulgated a system of romanization for Mandarin, Gwoyeu Romatzyh 國語羅馬字, dubbed the National Phonetic Symbols II 國音字母第二式. This intricate system incorporated the tone of each character into its romanized spelling. In spite of the system's official status, however, it has never been widely studied or used for two reasons: its complexity and the dominance of the Wade-Giles romanization system, which predates it. In 1984, the MOE announced the adoption of a modified form of Gwoyeu Romatzyh, in which tone spellings were replaced by tone marks. This, however, did not succeed in improving public acceptance of the system. Wade-Giles is currently the de facto standard in Taiwan, despite official use of the Postal Standard by the Directorate General of Posts under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications 交通部郵政總局 and occasional utilization in the public and private sectors of spellings based on other romanization standards. The simultaneous use of different romanization systems to represent the same Chinese pronunciation often confuses non-Chinese speakers attempting to identify street or place names in Taiwan. In December 1996, the Educational Reform Council 教育改革委員會, led by Dr. Lee Yuan-tseh 李遠哲, recommended that the government adopt a new romanization systemTongyong Pinyin 通用拼音, chiefly devised by Dr. B.C. Yu 余伯泉 of Academia Sinica 中央研究院. According to Dr. Yu, Tongyong Pinyin can be used to romanize not only Mandarin Chinese but also local languages in Taiwan, including Southern Fujianese and Hakka, and it is "compatible" with the Hanyu Pinyin 漢語拼音 system promoted by the Chinese mainland. At a time when Hanyu Pinyin has become internationally accepted, Tongyong Pinyin represents a conscious effort to promote a romanization system suited to Taiwan's culture and society (see Appendix VIII to find a comparison table of the most common romanization systems and the MPS). The MOE also saw a need to solve problems in the existing phonetic system. In January 1998, the MOE promulgated the Taiwan Language Phonetic System 臺灣語言音標系統, which was proposed by an MOE task force aimed at compiling guidelines for teaching dialects and aboriginal languages in March 1995. This system includes phonetic systems for Southern Fujianese and Hakka as well as phonetic symbols for aboriginal languages. Except for part of the phonetic symbols for aboriginal languages, the MOE's system has been registered with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). By doing so, the MOE hopes to facilitate the use of information worldwide. However, the Taiwan Language Phonetic System and the MOE's actions have aroused criticism from academic groups. Some academicians have been developing their own system and are declining the use of this system. Academia Sinica's Second Conference on Chinese Romanization System, held on May 27, 2000, demonstrated the diversity of views and the complexity of these issues. Topics such as establishing a norm for local pronunciation, developing a compatible romanization system for all local languages, remodeling programs for overseas Chinese, and taking into account non-linguistic elements were all discussed at the conference. Nevertheless, despite recommendation of the MOE's Mandarin Promotion Council in late 2000, a final decision is still pending until the minister of education convenes a new round of meetings to decide between the Tongyong and Hanyu Pinyin systems. Copyright (C) July 2002, Government Information Office.   All rights reserved.   Site design by L.F. Lee Best viewed with Netscape 4.x or IE 5.x (medium font) at 800 x 600 True Color (32 bit) resolution