Why Should I Learn Mandarin?
“Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still.” --Chinese Proverb. Living in a fast-paced and ever-changing world, industrialisation and technological inventions have narrowed the proximity of countries. Language is the only barrier to overcome in order to bridge the gap between countries. Chinese is a widely spoken language across the globe. Chinese speakers are also found dispersed over the rest of the globe which many may not even be Chinese. Take a look below for 5 reasons why Mandarin should be your choice to learn.
1. Career opportunities
The blooming prosperity and the foresee career opportunities of Chinese speaking countries might become one of your motivations in learning Mandarin. To take China as an example, it is observable that it has opened itself to the world regarding global investment. Foreign economic cooperations are also greatly encouraged. At the same time, the growing demand for people who can bridge the gap between China and English speaking countries will also make you a more competitive candidate in the workplace.
2. Is Mandarin difficult to learn?
Chinese may look complicated but compared to other languages like German or Finnish, it appears to be easier than you imagine. Unlike most European languages, Chinese has no tense, no cases, no genders and has a simple grammatical system. Technological advancements have also made handwritten characters easy. The rise in several popular character input methods like pinyin and voice input on mobile devices allows Chinese learners to create Chinese texts solely through pronunciation.
3. Helps you communicate in your travels
We all know Mandarin is not only spoken in China. Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore are also Mandarin-speaking locations along with other speakers spread across the globe. Traveling becomes easier when you know an extra language. Chit-chats with locals will help you experience the country and broaden your horizons in a different dimension compared to learning through what you can only observe.
4. Learn the language, learn the culture
China is one of the oldest continuing civilizations in the world. It offers the richest cultures with a mix of ancient and contemporary art, literature, customs, traditions, artifacts and more. Understanding the language allows you to dig deeper into their culture from books, movies, calligraphy in Chinese. It is always better to experience culture first-hand and investigate more through local exploration in its native language.
5. Exercise your brain
Did you know that Chinese learning utilizes both sides of your brain while other languages may not? Studies have shown that Mandarin speakers use both sides of their brains, whereas English speakers only use the left temporal lobe. Every Chinese symbol and character are unique. These iconographic characters are created through using “stokes” rather than letters, that carries an individual phonetic pronunciation. This extra specialty of Chinese allows you to exercise parts of the brain that other languages do not.