Posted by: quincygu on: November 24, 2008
The Yuè dialects , or Cantonese, are spoken by 71 million people in the province of Guǎndōng and the city of Guǎngzhōu (Canton), as well as in Hong Kong, and in expatriate Chinese communities and Chinatowns in Southeast Asia, Europe, and the United States . The origins of Cantonese are not known due to absence of reliable historical records, however, it is generally agreed that it had acquired linguistics traits distinguishing it from other Chinese dialects by the time of the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD).
Cantonese is one of the major languages of China. Standard Cantonese, also known as the Guǎndōng dialect refers to the most prestigious dialect spoken in Guǎngzhōu (Canton), Hong Kong, and Macau.
Cantonese is a most widespread dialect in China and because of its soicalhistorical reason. Like Cantonese, Shanghainese are also very popular in China.
(http://www.nvtc.gov/lotw/months/may/Cantonese.html)
