Foreign students learn to write traditional Chinese faicuns or couplets during the Chinese Spring Festival. Courtesy of Executive Mandarin

Learn Cantonese the natural way...from a Norwegian!" reads a language tutorial advertisement. Also known as the "Happy Jellyfish Language Bureau," Cecilie Gamst-Berg's quirky ads can be seen in Hong Kong Magazine and on her website.

In a sea of Mandarin-speaking wannabes wanting to cash in on its skill set value, she, however, sounded a bit different. "First of all, I love Cantonese and I think it should be the world language, not boring and stick-in-the-mud Mandarin," she said.

Cantonese cultural preservation

Mo, program manager of Original Chinese Language Institute, takes a cultural preservation stance on teaching Mandarin. "I am a Chinese," she said, underscoring that she does not want "our culture to pass away" along with the language.

Like many other language tutors, she cites that her Mandarin students are white-collar foreigners working in Central. Their main goal is to improve their competitive job skills. It's also a trend in Hong Kong and abroad to learn Chinese to understand Chinese culture, because China is a vast market, said Mo.

"Mandarin is the most popular also," she said adding that her students believe that Mandarin is more elegant than Cantonese.

In the face of cultural assimilation, there is a movement to preserve Chinese culture, more specifically, Cantonese culture in Hong Kong. For Cantonese-speaking Hongkongers, the question remains whether Cantonese is a "disappearing language". Its neighbors on the mainland, however, have managed to preserve their various dialects.

However, foreigners in Hong Kong often opt for Mandarin rather than Cantonese, as the latter can be practiced daily at local "dai pai dong" eateries, or while travelling by taxis and from Hong Kong Chinese professionals at the workplace.

The role of overseas Chinese

Chinese born and raised overseas fall somewhere in between. Mo refers to these types of students as those who can speak and understand Cantonese but cannot read or write Chinese characters. "They are very special groups only in Hong Kong. They are born or educated abroad. I need to create a tailor-made program and method for them."

The population of overseas Chinese fresh graduates in Hong Kong and Asia has been growing as many come here to teach English as native speakers. At the offices, these overseas Chinese are instrumental in building the language and cultural bridge between Cantonese, Mandarin and English speakers.

Some of them study Mandarin while already having a strong Cantonese background from their parents and a strong English language background from being born and raised in countries like Canada, the US, the UK and Australia.

Many return to Asia to rediscover cultural roots only to find their skills in fluctuating demand. They occupy an unusual place in Hong Kong society as well as within its language school system in English and Mandarin.

Beijing Immersion Guide

Cecilie Gamst-Berg, a foreigner who teaches Cantonese, writes Chinese characters. Tiffany Wong

Beijing-based Fiona Lee, marketing manager of Immersion Guides, a tongue-in-cheek Mandarin-English phrase book for foreigners, said: "I'm a Chinese-American from Hong Kong, and as I've lived in several Chinese communities both in China and abroad. I find that the Chinese diaspora is often spearheading interest in the Chinese language."

Fiona, who studied Mandarin for a few years before coming to China, said: "There was definitely a need for something that was a little more practical and frankly, more fun so that people could express themselves with the humor they express in their native tongue."

She echoes the sentiments that there are many language schools and programs that teach students the basics, yet they do not necessarily prepare students for real-world interactions - things "that aren't discussed in the classroom, like going to the bank and opening an account, rocking out at a concert, or discussing the finer points of art".

Local Hongkongers' attitude

While Cantonese remains the most widely spoken language in the city, locals have been multilingual.

However, much to the chagrin of some Cantonese speakers, their level of Mandarin has now been surpassed by Western non-Chinese expats who have studied the language intensively before arriving in the Asia-Pacific region. Nevertheless, children growing up in Hong Kong are expected to know perfectly (or as closely as possible) English, Cantonese and Mandarin.

However, Hong Kong's youth are still fascinated by Japan's "cool pop culture" as youngsters in a local English language center show their interest in learning basic Japanese while expressing their enthusiasm in English.

Previous Japanese trend

Gamst-Berg, who has been living in Hong Kong for 18 years, considers learning Mandarin as a trend: "When I first came to Hong Kong, 'everybody' was learning Japanese," she said. "But now they learn Mandarin."

Although it seemed like a good idea at the time, Japanese was once taught regularly in Hong Kong schools to cater to the nation's growing market and purchasing power. Now with the rise of China as the new economic powerhouse, the interest for learning Mandarin has deepened.

According to Hong Kong's government statistics, population aged 5 and over by Usual Language, 1996, 2001 and 2006 rose steadily for Cantonese and Mandarin speakers while the level of English has fallen. Perhaps what these statistics show is the interest Hongkongers have in learning about other cultures, including a casual interest in languages ranging from Japanese to Spanish to other Chinese dialects like Shanghainese.

(HK Edition 07/10/2008 page4)