Bits of China. Spent some time last night watching TV, and I chanced upon a Chinese talk show. There was a host and two guest speakers. It's been along time since I listened to Mandarin * he he* good thing there were English subtitles (and I could read those in a jiffy!). I didn't know what the topic of the show was, just that they were discussing the Chinese language becoming second to English as to the most-spoken language of the world. This is considering the number of Chinese in comparison to the total population of the world. They noted that even as far as France, there were already road signs written in Chinese. There has also been a proliferation of language centers teaching the Chinese language, specially in the States.
There has been some confusion as well in teaching of the language, because apparently there were two types - the simpler, more "modern" language and the other more conventional Chinese. (I think I belong to the ones who studied the traditional one, and my daughter is starting on the easier one.) Some centers would teach foreigners the simpler language just to get them talking to and being understood by Chinese using the simplest terms. The more conventional terms and writing of the language would then follow. Apparently there has been some confusion in the terms being used between the more conventional teachers and the teenagers or yuppies of today. Certain differences in intonation or the way words are spoken have been noted. Like a new term - LKK (lao khok khok) which apparently means old person is being used by today's teenagers. If you tell an older person about an LKK, they wouldn't understand what. Even among themselves, the Chinese have different ways of pronouncing some words, sometimes resulting in some confusion.
But one thing I admire about the person who came up with the language is the fact that Chinese, when written down, would be understood by all Chinese who come from different parts of the country and who may pronounce the words differently.