Which Chinese?

Cantonese or Mandarin?

Our clients often ask us if they should use Cantonese or Mandarin for their written Chinese documents. Our best answer is usually, “Neither!”

There are many distinct oral Chinese languages such as Mandarin, Cantonese, Shanghaiese, and others. But the writing system is generally ideographic. A Chinese character represents an idea or word, not a sound. That means all literate Chinese speakers can read Chinese characters, even if their oral language is not the same.

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Traditional or Simplified?

There are two distinct writing systems: traditional and simplified.*

• Mainland China uses Simplified characters. This system was introduced after the Communist revolution to help raise China’s literacy.
• In other countries and regions where Chinese is spoken, like Taiwan and Hong Kong, there was no switch to the simplified version, and they still use Traditional characters.

The best characters for your document depend on your audience.

Follow these guidelines:

For the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, use Traditional characters.
中國行

For Mainland China and Singapore, use Simplified characters.
中国行

If you are producing one document or website for Chinese speakers without regard to the country of origin, use traditional characters to maximize readership. Most Chinese speakers from Mainland China can read traditional characters, but other Chinese speakers may not read simplified characters.

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Still not sure?

Just ask us.

*Note: Audio materials do not follow these guidelines. They should be matched to the spoken language of your audience.

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