Malaysia languages

[Alhazred]

Is Mandarin widely spoken in Malaysia? I checked on Ethnologue and Mandarin is not even listed as one of the languages spoken in Malaysia (http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=MY) but Malaysia is apparently producing movies in Mandarin, see this one for instance: http://www.dahuangpictures.com/blogs/bwfla.php/2007/01/26/poster_aamp_info.

Can anyone shed any light on this? I'm puzzled.

[imron]

Depending on your Chinese level, you might like to check out this recent thread in the 中文角 that talks about Mandarin in Malaysia.

[atitarev]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysian_Chinese

Malaysian Chinese

Total population

5.4 million (est.)

Total population: 27,496,000

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Malaysia

[Lu]

But as I recall lots of them don't speak Mandarin, many speak Cantonese or Hokkien, and other fangyan as well, I suppose.

[wai ming]

But as I recall lots of them don't speak Mandarin, many speak Cantonese or Hokkien, and other fangyan as well, I suppose.

Rather, it's because of all the fangyan that Chinese-Malaysians use Mandarin as a lingua franca. I think most fangyan-speakers can at least speak and understand basic Mandarin. Even the older generations, in my experience, know enough Mandarin to get around.

Don't forget that something like 90% of ethnic Chinese attend Chinese-medium primary schools, where they are taught in Mandarin. Also, you might notice that Chinese-Malaysian popstars (eg 王光良、梁靜茹) tend to sing and write songs in Mandarin, even if they speak a fangyan at home.

[onebir]

A lot of (/perhaps most) Malaysian Chinese do speak Mandarin. I spend a few months in KL once & whenever I ordered Chinese food I'd ask for it in Mandarin - I can't remember having to switch to English once.

[cdn_in_bj]

When I visited Malaysia last year I spent a day in KL and met a taxi driver who was ethnic Chinese. Even though he was an older fellow, he was listening to a radio broadcast that sounded like a Mandarin educational program for kids. I chatted with him (in Mandarin) and he told me that his grandfather had come to Malaysia from Guangdong province.