Learning Cantonese at the same time as Mandarin; both from scratch (not a new learner)

[Kai]

About 5 years ago I started learning Mandarin through intensive classes. I used the NPCR books number 1 & 2. After about 2 years I got to the end of the 2nd NPCR book and read, wrote, spoke and listened to about the HSK 2 level (HSK 4 for speaking about day-to-day topics). After some time living in China and other Asian countries with a large number of Chinese speakers, I returned to my home country and quickly forgot everything I knew.

I am now starting to learn again independently, using the NPCR books. Despite their drawbacks and the fact that they are good for classroom instruction but not self-learners, I am familiar with the structures so I am going to give the NPCR books a go. I have decide to learn again from lesson 1, paying special attention to tones. On this note, can anyone suggest another COMPLETE series to follow instead? I plan on learning until I am fluent, that means I an willing to learn for 10+ years.

I also want to learn Cantonese at the same time as Mandarin. Does anyone have any advice on this? Many people say that Cantonese is the same as Mandarin but with different pronunciations and more tones. I know that this is far from the truth and I find learning Cantonese a daunting task. Right now I am planning on learning Cantonese pronunciation for every word I learn in Mandarin, writing simplified script only but learning to read both simplified and traditional. I have friends who can help me with pronunciations. Does this sound like something I can do? Just learn Cantonese from a Mandarin book? And at the same time? As I have such experience with Mandarin, I won't be mixing the two languages up at all. I just worry about things like grammar and differences with the two languages that I will not pick up on in a Mandarin textbook.

Any discussion on the matter will be appreciated.

[querido]

Edit: Many will tell you NPCR is good and I think it's a good idea to retrace your steps unless you get bored. I meant the following in addition to your other materials:

 

Even if you're advised not to study Mandarin and Cantonese at the same time, and if you're sure you want to study Cantonese too, then I don't think it would do any harm to learn the Mandarin in a textbook on Cantonese for Mandarin speakers; the parts they're teaching should be common-usage, and the explanatory parts should be about this very subject.

 

Other than that, I wouldn't try to advise you as I'm currently agonizing over related questions. Good luck!

[Kai]

But how about grammar. I hate grammar in Mandarin because you're not even taught it to some extent. Structure and grammar in Cantonese is very different to Mandarin. These two issues are the only real things holding me back from learning both Mandarin and Cantonese. 

 

Any suggestions for learning proper Mandarin grammar?

[querido]

There are many great threads here on that already.

Use the search tool at the top of the page and change the grey box (if you want to) from Google to forums.

[Hofmann]

Many like Yip Po-Ching's Chinese: A Comprehensive Grammar. I've never read it though so I don't know. And as you said, Cantonese and Mandarin are different languages, so you have to treat them differently. A lot of vocabulary is shared, however.

[Michaelyus]

There is of course Stephen Matthew & Yip Po-Ching's Cantonese: A Comprehensive Grammar, which was revised in 2010. Probably one of the few classic grammars for Cantonese. I think I've filed through the pages once of the old version, and it was pretty good. Decent, with some generally useful comparisons with Mandarin.