Saturday, October 28, 2006

鹹水中文 / "Lightly-Salted" Chinese

以前出外做留學生,是叫做「浸鹹水」, 意謂坐船過洋讀書.他們學成回鄉之後,就說得一口不鹹不淡的英文.反觀住在楓葉國多年的「華僑」,很多像我一樣,工作生活起居,用的都是英文和法文,中文少用生疏,很多時說的就是「鹹水中文」了,不知各位訪友察覺否?

In the old days of the ocean liners, people used to describe students going overseas for their education as "soaking in sea-water", a term that also inferred to their heavily Chinese-accented English upon their return. For Chinese Canadians who have lived here for a long time and are using mainly English and/or French on a daily basis, I wonder whether their Chinese is evolving the other way. Come to think of it, do you notice any English or French "accent" in the way I write my Chinese? Oui ou non?

4 comments:

San Wen Ji said...

yr chinese writing is very good indeed

Haricot 微豆 said...

Thanks, it is comforting to know that I have not lost it.

Unknown said...

I agree, I have the same issue myself. But your chinese writing is seriously good.

btw, thanks for dropping by my blog.

Haricot 微豆 said...

Gwen and Ian: It was not easy when I started to write blog articles in Chinese. 拉牛上樹 was the feeling. I am still learning.

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