The following are some useful links to aid you in your language studies. Happy studying!
(Please note that by clicking on the following links, you will be exiting from alesn.org)
CANTONESE (AUDIOVISUAL)
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnEUsFwPzxw&feature=related
An 11-second demonstration of how numbers 1 through 10 are pronounced in Cantonese, along with hand gestures.
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyeL11HCBZc&feature=related
A 30-second audio reading of 14 basic Cantonese greetings, from a short English and Jyutping chart.
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_JtSj95ZW0&feature=player_embedded
A lively, entertaining group celebration of birthdays. Great fun. Another way to find it is a www.youtube.com, entering “Gaoguowei Birthday Song” into the search box.
CANTONESE (POPULAR STUDY LINKS)
1. http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/
Home page of the popular Cantonese learning site of Adam Sheik from the U.K.
2. http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/dictionary/
CantoDict is a collaborative Cantonese-oriented dictionary project. About search box usage:
What to do What you get Example
|
Insert English word, and select “English Meaning” from drawdown menu |
List of translated Chinese words |
“Myself” shows 我 as one of the results |
|
Insert Chinese character, and select “Chinese Words” or “Chinese Characters” from drawdown menu |
Full description (jyutping, pinyin, translation, stroke count, radical) and list of associated words |
The first page for 我 shows 10 examples out of 288 |
|
Insert Mandarin pinyin, and select “Pinyin” from drawdown menu |
List of similar sounding words |
wo3 to find jyutping, pinyin, and English translation, “I” |
|
Insert Cantonese jyutping, and select “Jyutping” from drawdown menu |
List of similar sounding words |
ngo5 leads to two entries |
3. http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/scripts/examplelist.htm
Hovering over each word in the the “Word + Example” column gives you the Chinese character in large print, the jyutping and pinyin pronunciations, and the English meanings. Over 1000 sentences in their database so far – plus an audio feature! Phenomenal.
4. http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/scripts/masterlist.htm
This master list of Chinese characters is arranged into four levels of difficulty by the site’s creator. Want to find a character based on the number of strokes it has? Here you can find it, along with the jyutping, pinying and English.
5. http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/essays/cantonese_particles.htm
A very helpful explanation of Cantonese sentence endings, called particles, that change the mood or meaning of sentences.
6. http://www.cantonese.sheik.co.uk/phorum/read.php?1,86557
These postings about the grammar found on the Cantonese.sheik.co.uk site is, like any forum, a mixed bag. The very long post from Dec 10, 2008 (edited 33 times up to Jun 28, 2009) includes occasional academic-linguistic lingo such as “proximal/distal demonstrative” and “perfective/progressive/durative” particles.” Still, if grammar interests you, there is enough general info here worth reading even if you skim over those more obscure terminologies.
7. http://tonyp.jimdo.com/lessons-archive/
An archive of lesson handouts from Tony Parisi, co-founder of ALESN.
CANTONESE (UNIVERSITY/ACADEMIC LINKS)
7. http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf4/tsang1996ge.pdf
A four page academic paper by a Hong Kong scholar on the use of “ge” as a final particle. Do you still want to include this? It doesn’t grab my interest at first glance. It’s have to be a very motivated student to make their way through this.
8. http://www.lotpublications.nl/publish/articles/001865/bookpart.pdf
For the serious student of academic language learning, a 50+page book chapter on Cantonese final particles.
CANTONESE AND MANDARIN
1. http://www.chinese-lessons.com/
Free interactive online Cantonese, Mandarin and Chinese character lessons for English readers, as well as comments on Chinese culture and language learning. Originally developed to foster friendship between Chinese and Westerners, it is basic and easy to read. You can tell it was originally a personal hobby site; the FAQ page in the “About Chinese” drop-down menu includes “Short,” “Sarcastic,” and “Wordy” explanations. And the Links under “Other Services” include a diverse array, including some that have nothing to do with Chinese!
2. http://www.chinese-lessons.com/chinese/characters.htm
This page includes an online flashcard feature that shows how to write 50 selected Chinese characters in the proper stroke order.
MANDARIN
1. http://www.yellowbridge.com/
Listen to pronunciations, see sample sentences, search for a character by drawing it, use “fuzzy pinyin match” to find a word even if you’re not sure how it’s pronounced, use flashcards feature and more!
2. http://www.yellowbridge.com/chinese/chinese-dictionary.php
This Mandarin learning tool includes a video tour on how to use its Chinese-English Talking Dictionary.
3. http://www.mdbg.net/chindict/chindict.php
A Chinese-English dictionary including Windows, Mac and Mobile features.
4. http://www.mdbg.net/chindict/chindict.php?page=chardict
Beginners are likely to find the navigation and details confusing, but more advanced students will enjoy the eight-ways-you-can-type-Chinese capability.
5. http://www.mdbg.net/chindict/chindict.php?page=translate
Translate a short text from English to Chinese characters or the other way around.