Kwangtung

["Dixie" <Dixie@singnet.com.sg>]

The people.

Kwangtung is populated largely by the Han (Chinese), the other ethnic
minorities totaling only a tiny portion of its population. The Yao are the
largest ethnic minority in Kwangtung and are concentrated principally near
its northwestern border in autonomous counties. A heavily Sinicized group,
the Chuang-chia, live in Lien-shan, and the She live in the northeast
around Ch'ao-an. The Ching were transferred to Kwangsi in 1965, when the
multinational Tung-hsing Autonomous County in extreme southwestern
Kwangtung changed its provincial jurisdiction. The so-called Tan, or Tanka,
the Boat People, are not officially designated as a national minority.
Whereas some scholars believe they are descendants of aborigines, others
regard them as simply a people who live on boats and speak Cantonese. They
generally live along the rivers in the Pearl Basin as well as along the
coast. 

The relative ethnic homogeneity prevailing in Kwangtung stands in contrast
to the great diversity of dialects. By far the most important dialect is
Cantonese, spoken in central and western Kwangtung. There is considerable
variety among the Cantonese speakers, but the form spoken in Canton is
generally regarded as the standard. Hakka is another important dialect; it
predominates in the north and northeast of the province. Offshoots of Hakka
are common in central Kwangtung. A third major dialect, Min-nan (or south
Fukien dialect), is spoken mostly along an eastern coastal area centred on
Swatow. 

In addition to these Han dialects, there are the languages and dialects of
the ethnic minorities. New scripts have been created for a number of these
languages. They not only are taught in minority-area schools but also are
used in conjunction with Chinese in official communications in minority
communities.