Ummm…Can you speak Mandarin?
Written By: 孙智谦 on September 30, 2006
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I came across an article saying that 40% of China’s population can’t speak Mandarin. That’s a staggering statistic. According to the article, it’s mostly people in the rural areas, “the illiterate”, who can’t speak it. The article states that there are about 80 languages spoken in China, which is good news for travelers because you only have to learn about 79 more languages should you go somewhere where nobody speaks Mandarin!
More good news: The Chinese Ministry of Education says that about 30 million people are learning Chinese overseas, so even if you go somewhere in China where the natives don’t speak Mandarin, maybe you could talk to a random 老外.
