User:Inductiveload/Portal:China/Language

Chinese language covers a range of "Sinitic" languages and dialects of various degrees of mutual intelligibility. Today, the most widely spoken Chinese language is Mandarin. Other major varieties include Wu, Cantonese and Min. Older languages such as "Old" (including the literary "Classical" form) and "Middle" Chinese, extend the linguistic record back to 1250 BC.

Examples: San Tzu Ching (Wang Yinglin, Song dynasty, tr. Herbert Giles, 1900) • The Chinese Language Spoken at Fuh Chau (Moses Clark White, 1856)