Can Cantonese become the bridge between China-US cultural exchanges?
發佈日期: 2025-06-09 00:17
TVB News
A San Francisco organisation hopes to use Cantonese as a cultural exchange bridge between China and the U.S.
Peter has been learning Cantonese for more than 30 years. Apart from his passion for Chinese culture, Peter listed out other reasons for learning Cantonese.
PETER, San Francisco Resident: "I think that studying language gives you a free cultural lesson, so that's the way I like to do it."
Meanwhile, Clayton decided to learn Cantonese because of his Hong Kong wife and children. After learning the language for two years, he can now speak it fluently.
CLAYTON, San Francisco Resident: "I'm going to have another daughter and both of them are going to grow up speaking Cantonese, so I can't be left behind. And I wanted them to feel comfortable speaking Cantonese with me, not just with their mother. I love Cantonese idioms. I think is a very colourful language."
Clara Hsu, executive director of Clarion Performing Arts Centre, also the teacher of Peter and Clayton as well as other San Francisco Cantonese learners, said she is already satisfied when her students could speak a few sentences in the language.
An organisation said they hope Cantonese can become the bridge between China and U.S. cultural exchanges.
JULIA QUON, Co-founder of Save Cantonese: "Whenever we joke with each other in Cantonese, or people are able to even just greet each other, I think that really can diffuse a lot of tension."
The organisation also plans to design children books and play Cantonese films with English subtitles in the community.
