Shanghai dialect Revisited by a Shanghainese

Most Chinese people speak a local dialect. Many Shanghainese prefer speaking our own dialect i.e. Shanghai hua; and it may be the only language of older Shanghainese. A lilting(rhythmical swing or flow) dialect, just sounds almost Japanese. Shanghainese is unintelligible to Mandarin speakers and to speakers of most other dialects. When I was teaching at Suzhou University,two girls from Australia called me a tri-lingual guy because they know Mandarin already. Shanghai dialect is derived from the Wu region, south of the Yangzi River. It is helpful to learn the basic rules of the Pin Yin system since one needs to know how it is pronounced in Pin Yin. Modern dictionaries use the Pin Yin of transcription and has been officially adopted by the Library of Congress. Chinese characters are based on pictograms; about 3000 are in regular use; 3500 characters are sufficient for reading a newspaper. However,for a genius scientist, theoretical physicist from Hong Kong,he may know 10,000+ as a Dr. Knowall. Who is the smartest guy in Germany? Not Hitler but Dr.X or Dr. Y. X+Y=Z. Z is Zia in Shanghai hua! Hehehahahoho all the way to come back to Shanghai dialect of the ancestor Zia! My father's last name is Zia,the same surname for the maternal grandfather of the Genius.