Mandarin Mayhem, Part II: Dialect and Nationalism in China

<p><i>Barbarians at the Gate</i> returns to that ever-relevant and contentious topic, language reform in China and the fate of <i>fangyan</i>, the various local speech forms referred to as “dialects.” </p> <p>Joining us on the podcast is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ginaannetam.com/home.html">Gina Anne Tam</a>, Assistant Professor in History at Trinity University, and the author of the recent book <i><a target="_blank" href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/dialect-and-nationalism-in-china-18601960/9786AE3748A7FED2032D024251CC8A8F">Dialect and Nationalism in China, 1860-1960</a></i>.  Picking up the threads of the recent podcast “Mandarin Mayhem”, we explore with Gina issues such as the central role of language unification in the task of nation building; the tension between the goal of national unity and preserving China’s rich cultural diversity as manifested in <i>fangyan</i>; the future survival of the many local speech forms in the face of China’s ongoing national Putonghua promotion policy; and even a brief discussion of Chengdu rappers and the sociological implications of Sichuan dialect rap.</p> <p></p> 7.0.3