Lesser-Known Languages (LKL) - Taiwanese Hokkien / Tâi-gí
Lesser-Known Languages (LKL) - Taiwanese Hokkien / Tâi-gí
Part 2 - Language construction and general grammar
If you haven’t read the first part about how Hokkien reached Taiwan and evolved there, have a look at Part 1 first!
This part doesn’t refer to it much but knowing the backstory will make discovering the language all the more interesting!
For this part, I’ll rely on the Tâi-lô writing system as this was the one used for my main source of information and is the one prescribed by the Taiwanese Government.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of grammar, let’s talk about general facts about speaking the language.
Initials and finals
Initials are consonants that can start a syllable. Taiwanese has 17 of them (b ts tsh g h j k kh l m n ng p ph s t th). The “h” found in 4 of them indicates the consonant is aspirated, which means there should be a puff of air coming out when pronounced.
It can be interesting to note the absence of an “f” in the consonants found in Hokkien. This is because that letter arrived in China and entered the Middle Chinese language but Hokkien, coming from Old Chinese did not take it.
The initial “ng” can be difficult to imagine for an English-speaking mind. You can picture its sound by imagining the pronunciation of the word “uncle” and taking off the stressed part of the c.
Finals (the letters that end a syllable) are usually vowels that can have a nasal or stopped consonant ending. Finals are another particularity of Hokkien because there are many nasal ones. Nasals are when air comes out of both the mouth and nose.
On top of this, the consonants m and ng can be used without a preceding vowel because they are considered syllabic consonants. m (⽏) can be used on its own to mean “not, not want” while ng can be used on its own, as an initial, or as an ending (even without a consonant, as in 糖 thn̂g).
As for the stopped finals, this is also something not found in Mandarin. Indeed, while Mandarin stopped using them but Hokkien—and other languages like Cantonese and Hakka—have kept them.
One example of such a stop is the word ta̍k (逐) that means “every.”
Words ending with an h have a glottal stop, made by suddenly blocking the air going out of your mouth, as in the English “uh-oh.”
One last neat fact about its pronunciation is a phenomenon similar to the French liaisons: When a word ends with the suffix á (仔), the final consonant’s sound is carried over. For example, kin-á is actually pronounced kin-ná (⼱仔, ‘towel’).
Tones
Taiwanese has 7 tones. There were originally 8 but the 2nd and 6th have merged in today’s use of the language. The below graph shows how these are to be said but you can also refer to this video to hear them.
Here’s a simple explanation:
1st: High flat (similar to Mandarin flat 1st tone), not marked
si 詩 ‘poetry’
2nd: High falling (similar to Mandarin falling 4th tone), marked as an acute accent (ˊ)
sí 死 ‘to die’
3rd: Low falling (similar to Mandarin half-third tone, a dipping that doesn’t rise back up), marked as a grave accent (ˋ)
sì 四 ‘four’
4th: Mid stopped (not present in Mandarin), marked with the use of a stopped final consonant (-p, -t, -k, -h).
sih 熾 ‘bright’
5th: Rising, from low, (similar to Mandarin second tone), marked with a circumflex accent (ˆ)
sî 時 ‘time’
6th: Merged with 2nd tone
7th: Low flat (not present in Mandarin), marked with a macron accent (ˉ)
sī 是 ‘to be’
8th: High stopped (not present in Mandarin), marked with the use of a stopped final consonant (-p, -t, -k, -h) AND a vertical line accent (ˈ)
sı̍h 蝕 ‘to erode’
Apart from those, there is also the neutral tone which is light and at mid-register. This is usually indicated by adding a double hyphen before the syllable: --bô (無, question particle).
Thought that was a lot?
Wait until you see the tone change rules!
Mandarin only has a few such rules and they are mostly related to making speech flow in a more natural manner. Taiwanese, however, modifies its tones for grammatical purposes.
It’d be too long to explain them all here so I invite you to read and listen to this podcast episode by Bite-Size Taiwanese and/or watching this YouTube video series from Aiong Tâigí.
Here’s just a taster though:
The most important rule is that the last syllable always keeps its original tone while the rest doesn’t.
Yes, you read right.
All the tones in a word (including its compounds) will change except the last syllable. Here’s an example taken from this article by Bite-Size Taiwanese,
Now, don’t get me wrong, there are actual rules to how each tone changes and they just need to be learned and then assimilated, but they can be quite scary for beginners.
Here are how four different tones change. The Bite-Size Taiwanese host calls it “step down, bounce up, and hold” because it reflects the changes made.
There are other rules so don’t hesitate to check the article above!
It appears to be the hardest part of Taiwanese so if you get them right, you’re good to go!
Pronouns
The pronouns used in Taiwanese are the following:
guá 我 —pronounced as “wa”
lí 你
i 伊
gún 阮
lán 咱
lín 恁
in 怹
Those who know a bit of Mandarin will quickly notice the many differences.
First of all, while Mandarin has a masculine and feminine version of “you,” Taiwanese does not. Similarly, the third-person pronoun i (伊) is used for all genders.
Taiwanese does not use the plural particle 們, and instead opts for other pronouns entirely.
A difference is also made between the inclusive and exclusive “we,” something not really found in Mandarin apart from the Beijing and northern dialects’ 咱們.
An interesting evolution of the pronoun guá (我) is its pronunciation. Despite its writing, it’s now most often pronounced as wá.
While Mandarin also has a polite version of “you” (您 and 您們), Taiwanese does not. In fact, the pronoun 咱 lán can be used to say “you” in certain situations despite its original meaning of “we”:
tshiánn-mn̂g lán kùi-sènn? (請問 咱 貴姓?) → May I ask what is your surname?
Taiwanese’s possessive pronouns are rather simple (and similar in construction to Mandarin). All that’s needed is to add ê (的) after the personal pronoun. guá--ê (我的) therefore means “mine.” As a reminder, the -- indicates a neutral tone.
If, however, you were to write it guá ê, it would become a possessive adjective and mean “My”:
Lí ê pan-ki iân-gōo--ah. (你的 班機 延誤 矣。) → Your flight is delayed.
But
Lí--ê iân-gōo--ah. (你的 延誤 矣。) → Yours is delayed.
Tenses
1) Present
The present tense in Tâigí is simple as it only requires using the verb itself as it is. For example, the verb “to walk” is kiânn lōo (行 路) so “I walk” becomes guá kiânn lōo (我 ⾏ 路).
To create the present continuous for action verbs, the prefix teh (咧) is added:
guá teh kiânn lōo (我 咧 ⾏ 路) = I am walking
I hām pîng-iú teh kóng uē. (伊 和 朋友 咧 講 話。) = He is talking to his friend.
For stative verbs (such as “to think”), a time expression like “right now” is added before the verb instead:
Guá tsit-tsūn siunn-beh bîn--tsı̍t-ê. (我 這陣 想欲 眠 ⼀下。) = Right now, I am thinking of taking a nap. (lit.: I + right now + think + sleep + a bit)
2) Past tenses
To indicate the present perfect or any other action in the past, the particle --ah (矣) is added at the end of the sentence:
Gún tuà tàm tsit lîn sann nî--ah. (阮 蹛 踮 這 鄰 三 年 矣。) = We have lived in this neighborhood for 3 years.
For the standard past (ie. preterite) tense, one simple way is to add a time expression like “yesterday” after the verb. For emphasis, this time expression can be set before the verb though:
Guá tíng gue̍ h-jı̍t sin-tshíng hōo-tsiàu. (我 頂⽉⽇ 申請 護照。) = I applied for a passport last month.
For action verbs that are completed, however, it’s also possible to use the particle ū (有) right before the verb:
Guá ū h-jı̍t sin-tshíng hōo-tsiàu. (我 有 申請 護照。) = I applied for a passport.
This use of ū (有) to express the past is not exactly equivalent to the Standard Mandarin 了 set after the verb.
Side note: Taiwan Mandarin sometimes takes the Taiwanese Hokkien use of ū (有) to express the past rather than using 了.
Habitual actions in the past are created using a combination of two particles we’ve already seen: time expression (past) + ū (有) + teh (咧) + verb:
Guá kuè-khì tàm tsit tiâu khe-á ū teh siû tsúi. (我 過去 踮 這 條 溪仔 有 咧 泅 ⽔。) = I used to swim in this creek.
3) Future
Similarly to the past tense, it is possible to express the future just by adding a time expression like “tomorrow” (bîn-á-tsài, 明仔載). Another way is to add the novel verb ē (會) “will” before the verb:
Lán khì Bān-kok ê hue-lîng-ki bîn-á-tsái-á ē khí-pue. (咱 去 曼⾕ 的 ⾶⾏機 明仔早仔 會 起⾶。) = Our flight to Bangkok will take off tomorrow morning. (lit.: Our + to go + Bangkok + [possession marker] + airplane + tomorrow morning + will + to take off).
It is also possible to talk about a highly probable near future by using beh (欲) before the verb:
Siā--sian-sinn e-hng-àm beh tshiánn gún tsia̍ h pn̄g. (謝 先⽣ 下昏暗 欲 請 阮 ⾷ 飯。) = Mr. Sia is going to treat us to dinner tonight.
For something just about to happen, the construction teh-beh (咧欲) + verb + (--ah 矣) can be used. The --ah part serves to indicate a change in the current situation.
Negation
I never thought I’d need an entire section about negations but here we are.
Tâigí has 5 different common negatives. Five!
These are 毋 m̄ , 無 bô, 免 bián, 袂 bē, and 未 buē. These have an affirmative counterpart. I believe showing them side to side might make it easier to understand:
m̄ (⽏): Standard negation or negative volition
Tsit ê tsa-poo-lâng m̄ -sī gún pîng-iú. (這 个 查埔⼈ ⽏是 阮 朋友。) → This man is not my friend
Gún m̄ khì. (阮 ⽏ 去。) → We do not want to go.
bô (無): To not have, exist, have experienced, etc.
Tsit ê tshī-tiûnn bô king-tsio. (這 个 市場 無 ⼸蕉。) → There are no bananas in this market.
When the verb is surrounded by bô and kuè (過), it means “to have never experienced,” as in guá bô khuànn-kuè (我 無 看過, I have never seen before)
bē (袂): negation for some modal verbs (possibility, permission, ability). It can often be translated as “will not”
Gún lāu-su bē tsham-ka bú-huē. (阮 ⽼師 袂 參加 舞會。) → Our teacher won’t come to the dance.
buē (未): is the negation to mean “not yet”
Guá iáu-buē bé phiàu. (我 猶未 買 票。) → I haven’t bought the tickets yet.
Lín tsia̍h pá--buē? (恁 ⾷ 飽 未？) → Have you eaten yet?
When used at the end of a sentence, it transforms it into a question to ask if something has been done yet
bián (免): Indicates negation of obligations. Basically the opposite of “must,” often translated as “need not”
Lí bián tuà lí ê hōo-tsiàu. (你 免 帶 你 的 護照。) → You don’t need to bring your passport.
In practice, there are a lot more details that will impact which particle to use depending on the type of negation. This being said, the above should get you started on the right path.
Questions
The easiest way to turn a sentence into a question in Taiwanese is to add kám (敢) right in front of the part that’s being questioned.
As a result, the sentence i siá gō͘-cha̍p pái. (伊 寫 五⼗ 擺。“He wrote 50 times”) can be turned into multiple questions:
i kám siá gōo-tsa̍p pái. (伊 敢 寫 五⼗ 擺？)→ Was it writing that he did 50 times?
i siá kám gōo-tsa̍p pái. (伊 寫 敢 五⼗ 擺？) → Was it 50 times that he wrote?
kám i siá gōo-tsa̍p pái. (敢伊 寫 五⼗ 擺？) → Was it him who wrote 50 times?
In case of a negative question, kám (敢) has to go before the negation: kám (敢) + negation + verb phrase:
I kám m̄ -bat lán lāu-su? (伊 敢 ⽏捌 咱 ⽼師？) → Doesn’t he know our teacher?
As questions using kám (敢) are usually yes/no questions, it is possible to respond with a simple:
Sī / Hènn. (是 / 嘿。) → Yes
Bô. (無。) → No
Side note: The word --bô (無) is also starting to act as a universal question marker to put at the end of the sentence like the Mandarin 嗎 (ma) particle.
As for the other types of questions, the question word is usually put at the end:
What = siánn (啥) or siánn-mı̍h (啥物)
He sī siánn? (彼 是 啥？) → What is that?
Who = siánn-lâng (啥⼈), often pronounced as “siâng”. Literally “what person”
Tī mn̂g-kháu sī siánn-lâng? (佇 ⾨⼝ 是 啥⼈？) → Who is outside the door?
Where = siánn-mı̍h sóo-tsāi (啥物 所在) or tó-ūi (佗位), literally “what place”
Gún ê hîng-lí tī siánn-mı̍h sóo-tsāi? (你 上 愛 的 餐廳 佇 佗位？) → Where is your luggage?
When = siánn-mı̍h sî-kan (啥物 時間) sometimes shortened to siánn-mı̍h sî (啥物 時). It is usually set before the part we’re asking about. Literally “What time”
I siánn-mı̍h sî-kan beh khì Má-lâi-se-a? (伊 啥物 時間 欲 去 ⾺來西亞？) → When is he going to Malaysia?
Why = ná (哪). Set between the subject and the verb
Lí ná beh khì pēnn-īnn? (你 哪 欲 去 病院？) → Why are you going to the hospital?
How = án-tsuánn (按怎) or án-tsuánn-iūnn (按怎樣). Can be set either in front of the verb or at the end of the sentence.
Lí án-tsuánn tsò piánn? (你 按怎 做 餅？) → How do you make cookies?
Where to learn Tâigí
In case you didn’t realize this yet, Taiwanese Hokkien is an incredibly interesting language to discover. If you choose to learn it, here are a few good resources to get you started:
A comprehensive list of resources, including videos, PDFs (EN or CN)
Bite-Size Taiwanese, a podcast teaching Taiwanese.
Glossika’s app (Taiwanese Hokkien only requires a free account)
It is possible to choose which written scripts you want to see while you hear each sentence.
民視戲劇館 Formosa TV Dramas: A YouTube channel filled with TV series in Taiwanese (subtitled in Mandarin)
Taiwanese Made Easier: A website with lessons and audio files for 4 books teaching Taiwanese (in POJ)
Finally, this Google Doc shares a lot more resources organized by type.
All this being said, I have to say what seems to give the most complete grammar explanation was the “Taiwanese Grammar A Concise Reference.” It exists in Tâi-lô and in POJ. Most of the grammar explanation above was influenced by this book.
Closing words
Researching Taiwanese Hokkien was an adventure in and of itself. As someone who understands Mandarin to a certain degree, the Chinese characters allowed me to understand more easily many grammar patterns and recognize words.
The use of Tâi-lô, however, was a shocking revelation as it allowed me to clearly see the differences in pronunciation with Mandarin Chinese.
Still, by the end of my research, I found that I had remembered many simple words’ pronunciations1.
I’ve already wanted to visit Taiwan for a long time but learning all this made that wish grow manifold. As I plan on living in Asia in 2023, I really want to make a stop in Taiwan and spend time actually learning to use all that I’ve discovered this month.
In the meantime, I’m having fun with Glossika’s Taiwanese Hokkien course. It’s free and the research I’ve alraedy done on the grammar for this piece makes remembering new sentences easier.
Chài-kiàn! (再⾒!) — Goodbye!
Not saying that my pronunciation would be good though!