On July 1st 2013, China introduced new visa laws for foreigners, supposedly targeting illegal workers, but in reality targeting all expats in China (read the laws here).

Mostly it seems about being able to control and punish foreigners more, which is to be expected to deflect from the crashing economy. They will also be able to impose more severe financial penalties, which will probably become increasingly common.

The first of the laws are increases in fines and jail time for unauthorised work and overstays on visas. They are quite precise about what the penalties are, and how they will be imposed.

The laws also seem to be a little fairer, in that they allow the expat to decide whether to leave willingly, or risk deportation. That would seem to save the Chinese courts a lot of time and money getting rid of undesirables. But things aren’t always what they seem. (още…)

by James Palmer

Chinese parents bemoan the laziness and greed of their children, but this generation of young people has had enough

In 2004, fresh off the plane in Beijing, I was asked to judge an English competition for high-school seniors. My two co-judges were pleasantly cynical middle-aged sociologists, both professors at Tsinghua University. After listening to the umpteenth speech about how China used to be poor, but was now rich and powerful, I remarked to one of them that the students seemed a little sheltered.

‘They don’t know anything!’ she spat. ‘They don’t have any idea about how people live. None of this generation do. They’re all so spoilt.’

It’s a view I’ve heard time and again over the past eight years, and one of which the Chinese media never tire. The young get it from left and right. This January alone, the jingoistic Major General and media commentator Luo Yuan condemned the young for being physically and mentally unfit, ranting: ‘Femininity is on the rise, and masculinity is on the decline. With such a lack of character and determination and such physical weakness, how can they shoulder the heavy responsibility?’ (още…)

The Four Languages of „Mandarin“ [1]
by Robert M. Sanders

Assistant Professor of Chinese
Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures
University of Hawaii

Sino-Platonic Papers, 4 (November 1987)

1.0 Introduction

Many hours have been spent at scholarly meetings and many pages of academic writing have been expended discussing what is to be considered acceptable Mandarin. Very often these discussions degenerate into simplistic and narrow-minded statements such as “That’s not the way we say it in …!” or “We had better ask someone from Peking.”

Objectively speaking, these disagreements on style reflect a less-than-rigorous definition of which type of Mandarin each party is referring to. Because there has been a failure by all concerned to define fully the linguistic and socio-linguistic parameters of their assumed language(s), Mandarin oranges are often unwittingly being compared with Mandarin apples. (още…)

C—Translating the Language

Dictionary Bibliographies

U.S. Department of State. Office of External Research. List of Chinese Dictionaries in All Languages. Washington D.C. 1967.
Mathias, J. and Sandra Hinson. A Compilation of Chinese Dictionaries. New Haven: Far Eastern Publications, Yale University, 1975.
Yang, Paul Fu-mien. Chinese Lexicology and Lexiography a Selected and Classified Bibliography. Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 1985. ref Z3108 L5 Y286 1985

Comprehensive Dictionaries

Morohashi Tetsuji 諸橋轍次. Dai Kan-Wa jiten 大漢和辭典. 13 vols. Tokyo: Taishōkan shoten, 1957–1960; rev. and enlarged, Tokyo: Taishōkan shoten, 1989–1990. Vol. 14, glossary of all words and phrases arranged according to the Japanese syllabary. Supplement: Dai Kan-Wa jiten. hokan 大漢和辭典補卷. Tokyo: Taishōkan shoten, 2000.
Zhang Qiyun 張其昀 et al., comps. Zhongwen da cidian 中文大辭典. Taipei: Zhongguo wenhua yanjiusuo, 1962-1968. 38 vols. + 2 vol. index. Ref PL 1420 C57 10-vol. edition also available.
Luo Zhufeng 羅竹風, ed. Hanyu da cidian 漢語大詞典. 13 vols. Shanghai: Cishu chubanshe, 1986–1993; Hong Kong: Sanlian shudian, 1987–1993. Three-volume small print edition also available. (още…)

Яна ШИШКОВА

С навлизането на новите технологии, Китай се сблъска с нов проблем, възникнал с политиката на цензура на всякаква информация. Докато имаше само радио и телевизия, властите нямаха затруднения в това да прецеждат „неполезните“ новини и просто да не ги пускат. Блоговете напълно преобърнаха статуквото.

Днес в Китай расте нова прослойка интелигентни и политически активни млади хора, които свободно изказват своите мисли в блогове. Най-авторитетните блогъри от друга страна придобиха статут на независими медии. Проблемът се появява с острата форма на недалновидност на цензорите, които явно са твърде необразовани хора, незапознати със съвременната история, неспособни да се поучат от колапса на СССР и с арабската пролет.

Винаги съм твърдяла, че не желая КНР да се разпадне по начина, по който това се случи в нашата част на света. Не желая свободата да дойде на цената на мизерията и разпада на държавността. В същото време смятам за нетърпима цензурата в Китай. Какво означава да даваш прекрасно образование на своите хора и да ги изучиш умни и начетени, а в същото време да кажеш – „Вие ще мислите до тук, а от тук – ще мислим ние“. Никой няма правото да се изказва по въпроса кой какво следва да мисли и говори. Ние изстрадахме правото на свобода на словото, но нищо от това не получихме – само голо слово. Нима е толкова трудно да има и държавност и неподтиснат народ?

В тази връзка публикувам обяснението на служител на Уейбо за проблемите с цензурата, пратено от приятелка в Китай. Ако някой желае, нека да го преведе, така че да публикувам и превода. (още…)