International Language Centre

What is Mandarin and What is Cantonese?

Mandarin is the official language in China, and it's spoken by over 90% of the
population in China. Although most of the Chinese people speak Mandarin with different ascents, you can still understand more or less. The most accurate Mandarin speakers are located at the north of China, Beijing, one of the places.

Cantonese is a dialect of Chinese, spoken by lots of people who live in Canton province, which located at the south of China, the number of speakers in
Cantonese are comparatively much less than Mandarin, because of it's long histroy, it remains plenty of Chinese culture and tradtional customs, slang and idioms, the content of Cantonese is richer than Mandarin for times!

Should I learn Mandarin or Cantonese in Hong Kong?

What are the differences between Mandarin and Cantonese?

1 .Tones. Both Mandarin and Cantonese have tones, but Mandarin has 5 tones, and Cantonese has 9 tones!
2. Grammar is more completed in Cantonese.
3. Cantonese sometimes use less words to explain the same thing in Mandarin.
4. Cantonese has more slangs!
5. Mandarin sounds softer, smoother.
6. Is more tiring speaking Cantonese, since the tones need you to go up and down all the time.
7. Cantonese Characters, traditional are more complicated than simplified Characters in Mandarin.
8. Mandarin is spoken by 90% of the Chinese population, while Cantones is used in GuangDong area.
9. Guangdong Cantonese and Hong Kong Cantonese are slightly different.
10. In terms of grammar, they are 70% the same, but for pronuncaiton, they are 70% different!
11. In Cantonese, they use a lot of animals, death, bad words.
12. For foreigner, it's easy to learn Mandarin then Cantonese!
13. Cantonese has a longer histroy than Mandarin, therefore, it has more words and culture influences.

Why International Language Centre?

Mandarin & Cantonese Courses

Testimonial

"Studying Chinese at the International Language Center has been an excellent
experience.

As a foreign language teacher myself, my standards are quite high, and all my
expectations have been met or exceeded. My teacher is consistently patient and
friendly, the classroom atmosphere is positive and relaxed and the materials used
are top-notch. I have made great progress since I started studying at the International Language Center and I couldn’t have done it without them!"

Christine O'Donnell

"What an enjoyable and instructive way into a difficult language!

After 18 months of lessons at International Language in Sheung Wan, I can safely
say it's one of the best investments of time and money I've made here in Hong Kong. Cantonese is a difficult language, but being a Westerner who can happily get by in taxis, restaurants, estate agents and in simple chit chat at work definitely sets you apart and
opens new doors and hearts with local people.

The learning has been fun, personal and flexible to my job and commitments, and beyond steadily building my basic grasp of the language, attending lessons has also given insights into Hong Kong culture and history, which are rewarding in their own right.

I wouldn't say it's easy learning Cantonese, but it's worth it and this is a great place to do it."

Strategy Director, Media Company
Dan Cotton

"I really enjoy my Mandarin lessons at the International language Center. It is quiet and
conveniently located, plus it is fun learning at my own pace with our teacher. After
one month I already feel like I know a lot, and want to get more. Anne Cousin, France"

Anne Cousin

"I came across the International Language centre a few months ago when I was in
search for a good school to improve my Mandarin speaking. I must say, I was very lucky
to have found this one as I believe it is one of the better and most effective schools I've tried. In just a short amount of time, I began to be able to make basic conversations.
Chris is a fantastic teacher and I highly recommend him."

Claire Hau

"Learning Cantonese at the International Language Centre has, and continues to
be a great experience. The school, and my teacher Chris are very flexible and fit in
easily with my busy schedule. The class is always interesting and luckily,
Chris is very patient! I would highly recommend this language school to anyone!
Neih hou sai leih! "

Hearthwick Studio
Alex Jones
Architect

Hong Kong being what it is, I found that I didn't have much time in the week to focus
on learning Cantonese and realised that I wouldn't get very far at all under my
own steam.  So I approached ILC initially to ensure that I was at least doing something each week towards learning the language in a regular and systematic way.  I have had only a one hour lesson each week now for just over a year and in that time Chris has brought me to the point where I can communicate in everyday situations and pick up
quite a lot of what people are talking about.

To make rapid progress then probably you should invest more than an hour per week like me.  But Chris has worked at my pace, making each lesson fun, interesting and relevant.  As a result, I look forward to each lesson and won't every get beaten up if I haven't managed to complete my homework!  Cantonese isn't easy, but like a lot of things in life, I know that all I have to do is to keep going at it for long enough in order to succeed.  Chris is friendly and immensely patient, he obviously enjoys his job and I would recommend his services to anyone who is looking for a Cantonese teacher.

Richard Williams Fidessa

My colleague and I are on two year work placements in Hong Kong from the UK and
have been studying Cantonese at the International Language Centre for almost a year.
Chris is a great teacher and the teaching material is easy to follow and relevant to what we do in work and in our free time. With my teacher’s help I am steadily becoming more able to communicate with work colleagues and the general public here in Hong Kong, which has enriched my time here and made it more enjoyable. I’d thoroughly
recommend the learning of Cantonese if you visiting Hong Kong or the region. The International Language Centre is conveniently placed in Central and offers a good environment within which to learn.

Fergus Comer, Architect

"Learning a new language in between busy work schedules can be daunting and in
my previous experiences with other courses, tedious and boring. Teaching style at the
International Language Centre and the course book used made learning of the basics of Mandarin easier, faster and relevant, especially for a foreigner like myself who just
wanted to learn how to speak.

Learning became more fun and interactive being in a small class of 3-4 pax.
and I was highly appreciative of the flexible teaching style of our teacher, Chris. 
It's quite amazing how much I can understand now and speak after
completing the beginner's course.".

Yoojin Ahn, South Korean

"Having been living and working in Hong Kong for the past 14 years I felt that it was
about time that I rtook steps to learn Cantonese even though I do not have a
natural talent or ability for learning languages! 

I have been pleasantly surprised to find that I have enjoyed my Cantonese studies at the International Language Centre, and have experienced my language skills improving each week.  It is also rewarding to find that my work colleagues and friends have also noticed how much of an improvement I have made with my daily Cantonese conversational skills which I put down to my weekly lessons.

My teacher has made learning fun and I enjoy studying in a casual and relaxed atmosphere and look forward to each lesson. With text books and MP3 files available for study in one's own time, and both structured lessons mixed with informal conversation learning has been fun and interesting .  I look forward to continuing my lessonsat the International Language Centre and furthering my knowledge of the Chinese language.

Top-Toy (Hong Kong) Ltd
Richard Crosbie

"I am extremely satisfied with my basic level Mandarin group course at the
International Language Centre. Chris, our teacher, makes learning this rather
difficult language truly interesting, easy and fun. Chris is a talented teacher, who constantly keeps us on our toes with his exercises and tutorials. After two months of studies, I already feel I have a good grounding to be able to transfer to the intermediate level. I couldn't be happier!

Ingrid Palsson Escudero

School environment