FIU Libraries: Language Studies: Japanese, Korean, & Chinese: Chinese

Chinese Language Resources

Pinyin.info: Pinyin.info is a guide to writing pinyin, that is, the official transliteration of Mandarin characters to the Latin alphabet. You will find a chart containing all the possible combinations of initials and finals, the basic rules for writing pinyin, where to place tone marks, information about the history of pinyin and other romanization systems (MPS2, Wade-Giles, Yale) and so on.

Chinese Pronunciation Wiki: Chinese Pronunciation Wiki is yet another free resource offered by AllSet Learning. Here you will find a detailed explanation of all Chinese sounds and tone. Beside this, you will find a complete pinyin chart where you can listen to each sound.

Chinese Grammar Wiki: Chinese Grammar Wiki is released by AllsetLearning, which provides free practical, but comprehensive online resource for Chinese grammar. It can be concluded as a mini-Wikipedia devoted entirely to Chinese grammar.

Arch Chinese: A rich learning system, useful for Chinese learners and teachers alike. They offer too many tools to list here, but features include a Skritter-like application to practice handwriting, animated stroke orders and native recordings for all standard characters, and a great dictionary which indicates the HSK level of common words. Teachers and kinaesthetic learners ought to investigate the huge range of tools they have for creating real-world paper flashcards, worksheets, characters sheets and more.

Chinese Tools: This is a brilliant resource specific to understanding cheng yu (four-word idioms), which are typically a major barrier to understanding native speakers and colloquial speech. Even more useful than a simple dictionary is their collection of the short stories traditionally used to explain each cheng yu, to put it in context.

Chinese Reading Practice: An incredibly valuable collection of authentic texts sorted by level from beginner to advanced. The blog author includes interesting introductions to each piece which touch upon cultural notes and possible difficulties for learners, and provides an English translation for every one. The collection is not that extensive but there is great variety, from kids stories to essays, songs to news articles.

A Chinese Text Sampler: Whilst being a pretty bare-bones website that won’t win you over with it’s design, this is actually a fantastic collection of many culturally important texts and excerpts which can really help enrich your understanding of the language and progress towards true literacy.

Chinese Pop Songs: This website has songs in Chinese, pinyin, and English. Listen to the Mandarin pop songs and learn to sing them!

Jukuu: This is an excellent website for getting a sense of how to use new words/phrases (a very different matter from just learning what something means). When you search a word (/phrase/sentence part) it returns authentic Chinese sentences with your search item indicated and an English translation above. It works as a translation tool too, in that you can search what you want to express in English and find out the most natural words used to do so in Mandarin. It also displays statistics indicating the most commonly used options!

Chinese Character Etymology: This website is THE resource for character etymology. Type any character into the search, and see how the character has evolved over time, back hundreds if not thousands of years. This is not a tool that has any immediate bearing on gaining fluency, but for advanced learners wanting to improve their literacy and gain a deeper understanding of 汉字 this is a priceless resource.

Forvo: Though pinyin is a pretty reliable guide to pronunciation in Mandarin Chinese, there is no substitute for native speakers. Forvo gives you free access to recordings of over 75,000 words and short phrases pronounced by just such native speakers. A great resource to enrich your understanding of new vocabulary.

Mandarin Chinese for Beginners by Yi Ren; Xiyuan Liang This user-friendly guide to the basics helps you learn how to speak Chinese quickly and easily by drawing parallels with something you already know--English. Chinese is a fascinating language that can seem impossibly difficult to learn at first, but is relatively easy if you focus on the spoken aspect. This revised edition contains new dialogues, cultural notes, IT and social media vocabulary, and new manga illustrations. This book is designed for everyone who wants to learn to speak and understand colloquial Chinese--whether it is for business, pleasure, or travel to China. A lighthearted guide that brings Chinese to life in a down-to-earth fashion,Mandarin Chinese for Beginners makes language learning fun. Real-life dialogues and situations help you to converse with confidence Sentence pattern exercises and drills help to reinforce what you are learning Native-speaker audio recordings enable you to pronounce Chinese vocabulary accurately Interesting notes, idioms, sayings and poems introduce you to Chinese culture Mandarin Chinese for Beginners contains lots of extra hints and tips drawn from the authors' many years of experience in teaching the language to foreigners. Answer keys for the exercises are provided, and an "Extend Your Vocabulary" section in each chapter helps you to remember and understand more words that you'd think possible.
Call Number: PL1129.E5 R46 2018
ISBN: 0804849463
Publication Date: 2019-06-11
Mandarin Chinese Picture Dictionary by Yi Ren A fun and helpful resource for anyone interested in learning some Mandarin--whether you're 5 or 100! This picture dictionary covers the 1,500 most useful Mandarin Chinese words and phrases. Each word and sentence is given in Mandarin characters--with a Romanized version to help you pronounce it correctly--along with the English meaning. The words are grouped into 40 different themes or topics, including basics like meeting someone new and using public transportation to culture-specific topics like celebrating Chinese holidays and eating Chinese food. This colorful picture dictionary includes: Hundreds of color photographs 1,500 Mandarin words and phrases 40 different topics--from social media and WiFi to paying and counting Example sentences showing how the words are used Companion online audio recordings by native Mandarin speakers of all the vocabulary and sentences An introduction to Mandarin pronunciation and grammar An index to allow you to quickly look up words Mandarin Chinese Picture Dictionary makes language learning more fun than traditional phrasebooks. This resource is perfect for beginners of all ages--curious kids, visual learners and future travelers to China.
Call Number: PL1455 .R469 2018
ISBN: 0804845697
Publication Date: 2018-03-27
Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar by Claudia Ross; Jing Heng Sheng Ma Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar is an innovative reference guide to Mandarin Chinese, combining traditional and function-based grammar in a single volume. Divided into two sections closely linked by extensive cross-references, it covers: traditional grammatical categories such as phrase order, nouns, verbs and specifiers language functions and notions such as communication strategies, giving and seeking information, expressing apologies, regrets and sympathies. With all grammar points and functions richly illustrated with examples, and a strong emphasis on contemporary usage, the main features of this Grammar include examples in simplified characters, traditional characters, and romanization (Pinyin) as well as an emphasis on areas of particular difficulty for learners of Mandarin Chinese. This is the ideal reference grammar for learners of Mandarin Chinese at all levels, from elementary to advanced. No prior knowledge of grammatical terminology is assumed and a glossary of grammatical terms is provided. Featuring related exercises and activities, this Grammaris accompanied by the Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar Workbook.
ISBN: 9780203799932
Publication Date: 2006-09-27
Chinese: An Essential Grammar by Po-Ching Yip; Don Rimmington; Yip Po-Ching This new edition of Chinese: An Essential Grammar is an up-to-date and concise reference guide to modern Chinese (Mandarin) grammar.   Refreshingly jargon free, it presents an accessible description of the language, focusing on the real patterns of use today. This Grammar aims to serve as a reference source for the learner and user of Chinese, irrespective of level, setting out the complexities of the language in short, readable sections. Features include: A new chapter on paragraph development Chinese characters, as well as the pinyin romanization, alongside all examples Literal and colloquial translations in English to illustrate language points detailed contents list and index for easy access to information A glossary of grammatical terms   It is ideal either for independent study or for students in schools, colleges, universities and adult classes of all types.
ISBN: 9780203969793
Publication Date: 2006-09-27
Basic Cantonese by Virginia Yip; Stephen Matthews This Grammar and Workbook is ideal for learners of Cantonese wishing to take their knowledge of the language beyond the elementary level. Its twenty-eight units highlight the key building blocks of sentence structure and comprise a structured introduction to essential grammar points. Each unit also features exercises, focusing on the communicative language, devised to perfect the students knowledge of these grammar points. Its clear presentation and lack of jargon mean that it can be used in conjunction with a language course or for independent study. It will also prove invaluable for revision and reference. Featuring an introduction to the language, full key to exercises and a glossary of grammatical terms, the Grammar and Workbook provides a firm foundation on which to build proficiency and confidence in speaking, reading and writing Cantonese.
ISBN: 9781134650613
Publication Date: 2000-01-01
Dreaming in Chinese by Deborah Fallows Deborah Fallows has spent much of her life learning languages and traveling around the world. But nothing prepared her for the surprises of learning Mandarin, China's most common language, or the intensity of living in Shanghai and Beijing. Over time, she realized that her struggles and triumphs in studying the language of her adopted home provided small clues to deciphering the behavior and habits of its people,and its culture's conundrums. As her skill with Mandarin increased, bits of the language--a word, a phrase, an oddity of grammar--became windows into understanding romance, humor, protocol, relationships, and the overflowing humanity of modern China. Fallows learned, for example, that the abrupt, blunt way of speaking that Chinese people sometimes use isn't rudeness, but is, in fact, a way to acknowledge and honor the closeness between two friends. She learned that English speakers' trouble with hearing or saying tones--the variations in inflection that can change a word's meaning--is matched by Chinese speakers' inability not to hear tones, or to even take a guess at understanding what might have been meant when foreigners misuse them. In sharing what she discovered about Mandarin, and how those discoveries helped her understand a culture that had at first seemed impenetrable, Deborah Fallows's Dreaming in Chinese opens up China to Westerners more completely, perhaps, than it has ever been before.
Call Number: DS779.43 .F36 2010
ISBN: 9780802779137
Publication Date: 2010-08-31
Let's Learn Mandarin Chinese Kit by Li Yu **Winner of the 2016Creative Child Magazine Preferred Choice Award* Let's Learn Mandarin Chinese Kit is a complete language learning tool specially designed to introduce young children to the basic sounds, words, characters and phrases of Mandarin Chinese in a fun and interactive way. This Chinese language kit is perfect for use in a classroom setting, for homeschooling, on vacation, or anywhere else that learning takes place. It contains: 64 Chinese flash cards An audio CD with recordings of songs, games and activities A wall chart showing the main words and phrases at a glance A 32-page learning guide for parents and teachers The flash cards present 64 basic words and phrases representing the full range of sounds in Mandarin Chinese and organized into thematic categories, including: Basic Etiquette and Daily Routines Introducing Family Members Identifying Objects Identifying Body Parts Learn the Multiplication Table Tell Me What You Like or Do Not Like Tell Me What You Like to Do Each word is illustrated with a picture that serves as a useful visual aid to learning and remembering the word. The words often reflect cultural objects and can be studied in any order. Learners may focus on one theme at a time or mix them up for greater variety. Simple example sentences are given for each word to show how they are used. The audio CD gives native-speaker pronunciations for all the words and sentences and also contains songs, games and other activities which promote interactive language learning. Finally, the kit includes a wall chart featuring all the pictures and words, and a booklet explaining how to use the flashcards, audio CD and wall chart and how to play the games and activities.
ISBN: 9780804845403
Publication Date: 2016-03-08
Learning Chinese by Belinda Y. Louie; Aki Sogabe (Photographer) Weighing an elephant, turning an iron rod into a needle, and other authentic stories in this book, which charmed generations of Chinese children in the past, continue to delight young readers today. The English/Chinese bilingual texts allow both novice and advanced Chinese language learners to sharpen their language skills while enjoying the stories. More than just a picture book, the intricate papercut illustrations invite young readers to color the pages and to reflect upon the stories. From making shadow puppets to constructing your own shuttlecock, the Chinese activities and games provide further enrichments to the reading of these traditional tales.
Call Number: PL1115 .L68 2007
ISBN: 188754254X
Publication Date: 2007-09-01
Teaching and Learning Chinese as a Foreign Language by Janet Zhiqun Xing This book provides a research-based account of how to teach and learn Chinese as a foreign language. In addition to the discussion of relevant second/foreign language research, this volume gives detailed information on ways to develop a pedagogical model that is uniquely suited to teaching Chinese in five key areas pronunciation (tones and pinyin), characters and words, sentences (when and why different sentence structures are used), discourse and pragmatic competence (coherence and genre), and cultural competence. Specially written for Chinese language teachers, student teachers, and applied linguists, this is the first book written in English that systematically addresses all major aspects involved in teaching and learning Chinese as a foreign language. This book covers all the fundamental grammar elements in Chinese, explains their functions in discourse and communication, and explores different strategies for teaching and engaging students in learning the language.
ISBN: 9622097626
Publication Date: 2006-01-01
Mandarin Chinese by Charles N. Li; Sandra A. Thompson This reference grammar provides, for the first time, a description of the grammar of Mandarin Chinese, the official spoken language of China and Taiwan, in functional terms, focusing on the role and meanings of word-level and sentence-level structures in actual conversations.
Call Number: PL1107 .L5 1981
ISBN: 0520042867
Publication Date: 1981-08-17
A Reference Grammar of Mandarin Chinese for English Speakers by Chauncey C. Chu This reference grammar provides a description of Mandarin Chinese in familiar terms and enables the English-speaking reader to transfer his/her knowledge of English to the study of Chinese. Many of the unique features of the language are treated through a comparison with semantically corresponding, though syntactically different, features in English. Aside from the conventional types of sentences, special constructions are amply explained and illustrated for the reader. Understanding the specific meaning of each of these constructions is one of the central themes of the grammar. This book contains a number of original analyses, such as that of the -shi---de- construction and the notion of continuum for the indiscrete nature of linguistic structure, which should serve as a valuable reference source for both the language teacher and the profession of Chinese linguistics."
Call Number: PL1129.E5 C45 1983
ISBN: 0820400424
Publication Date: 1983-12-01

ChinesePod: From beginners' videos to survival series, this YouTube channel is always trying to make new content. All of their videos are not very long–from 15 seconds to 10 minutes–which is perfect for learning in your free time.

Yoyo Chinese: Hostess YangYang consistently delivers high-quality Chinese learning videos. With professional presentations, effective teaching methods ,and concise explanations, Yangyang does a great job of teaching Mandarin. She covers topics such as grammar, Pinyin, and important Chinese basics.

ChineseClass101: Do you want to learn Chinese in three minutes? ChineseClass101 supplies various Chinese learning videos, and one of them is about how to learn Chinese in three minutes. There are several basic simple sentences that the teacher, Ma Yanru, explains in detail.

CantoneseClass101: CantoneeClass101 YouTube channel share several video series like the playlist of Cantonese lesson in 3 minutes would teach you some basic Cantonese such as apologies, numbers, greeting which are practical, and the playlist of Hong Kong Holidays much appeal to those who are interested in Chinese culture.

Learn Chinese Now: If you've wondered how the experience of learning Chinese as a foreigner is, then check out the Learn Chinese Now channel. Ban, a foreigner who is fluent in Mandarin, makes Chinese learning funny through various kinds TV-like skits. He teaches Chinese for travel, business, dates as well as idioms.

Learn Chinese with Litao: Litao's videos are based on the HSK and offer lessons up to level 2. The teaching approach is quite systematic, and serious learners can benefit since it's all about language learning.

Chinese Zero to Hero: Although also focusing on HSK content learning, this YouTube page still stands out. This channel shows two Chinese men explaining grammar points according to the HSK requirements. The grammar points coverage is wider than many of the other Chinese teaching YouTubers. You can find some explanations on their page which are less mentioned by others.

ChineseFor.Us: ChineseFor.us is hosted and run by Lili, who lives in the US and focuses on teaching through video. Her courses include pronunciation, characters, and a how-to-say series. Now she is making a course based on HSK. Her teaching style is repeating the target content several times to make sure you are engaged and will remember her lessons.

Mandarin Corner: One of the obvious features of Mandarin Corner is the diversity of the video topics, such as HSK, vocabulary, reading, talking, surviving, and even translations. The other outstanding feature is the teaching style. The teacher uses casual conversations which may be used in real life so as to teach the viewers in a practical way. The Chinese and English subtitles also help learners understand the content easier. From their videos, you can experience various role playing while learning new vocabulary which may not be found in the regular textbooks.

Learning Chinese through Stories (LCTS): You’ll listen to stories told in Chinese and the hosts will explain different parts of the story as they go through it. It has a fairly large library of content and is still actively releasing new material. Some lessons are very short and only last a couple of minutes, while others are 20+ minutes long.

Coffee Break Chinese: Learn to speak Mandarin Chinese with teacher Crystal and learner Mark in regular lessons from the Radio Lingua Network. These lessons last around 30 minutes each and are suitable for beginner students.It’s kind of like sitting in on a private class and learning alongside the host!

Slow Chinese: There are around 200 lessons, lasting from 3-5 minutes on average. As the title suggests, the host speaks at a slower pace which makes it a bit easier to follow along. You can also find the transcript and translations online in multiple languages. It’s most suitable for intermediate level students.

Talk Chineasy: This podcast is almost entirely in English. The episodes will focus on a Chinese word or phrase, often discussing Chinese culture and history. Lessons are typically from 6-8 minutes long.

Melnyks Chinese Lessons: This podcast has over 75 beginner level lessons available for free. They typically last around 20 minutes. The host is a foreigner that has learned Mandarin. First, he’ll introduce you to new vocabulary words. He’ll repeat the words very slowly several times. Later on, he’ll add in full sentences.

Chinese Learn Online: Chinese Learn Online offers over 400 lessons across seven difficulty levels.

iMandarinPod: This podcast is releasing content quite frequently – around 4 or so new lessons per week. They focus on Chinese culture and news. Most lessons are around ten minutes long. They’re entirely in Chinese and are suitable for intermediate or higher level students.

Learning Chinese Podcasts: This webpage provides links to supplementary Chinese podcasts, some of which are listed on this page.

HelloChinese: Hello Chinese is a powerful learning tool that can help you overcome the fear of learning Chinese. This app focuses on daily life topics. It starts from basic pinyin, so that even if you are a total beginner or have absolutely no background in Chinese, you can still learn with it. What is special is that this app allows you to listen and record your own voice, and to help you check automatically if your pronunciation is correct.

Pleco: Pleco is available on Android and iOS devices and is an all-in-one app: off-line dictionary, flashcards, optical character recognizer, handwriting recognizer, stroke order diagrams, audio pronunciation, and text reader.

The Chairman's Bao: Reading news stories on The Chairman's Bao feels less like studying and more like something you would do for fun. With so much of the content being China-centric, you’ll learn a ton about the culture as well. They also have comprehension exercises with each article.

Chinese Skill: Chinese Skill is free app that’s great for beginners. The design and interface is really cute, featuring a panda, of course. Also, the content is designed according to categories like food, numbers and colors—so you get the learning in a rather systematic way while having some fun.

Du Chinese: Du Chinese is an app that will help you improve your Chinese reading skills. It's easy to use and loading material takes only seconds. You can read by yourself or listen to an audio recording and read along. You can easily turn the pinyin on and off and switch Chinese characters between Simplified and Traditional. It supports English translations for single words and sentences. All sentences have been carefully translated and they stay as true as possible to the original Mandarin. The reading material topics cover daily conversations, Chinese culture, current events, the latest trends, funny stories, and regular life in China.

Clozemaster: Clozemaster is a popular app that is excellent for getting lots of exposure to sentences and vocabulary. This app uses lots of fill in the blank exercises for which you can type in your answer or choose from multiple choices. You can filter sentences based on HSK level and you’ll earn points for answering questions correctly. Although there is a pro version that requires a subscription, most people will find the free version to offer plenty of value.

Mango Languages: The sweet and simple language learning app, this app is geared towards teaching you practical phrases and having you use them in everyday life. The content is very auditory-heavy, with clear voice recordings of every phrase and prompts to repeat and record yourself. Vocabulary and grammar lessons are combined together in units called “getting around”, “asking opinions”, and similar phrases. We loved the timer feature on the lesson quizzes, which added a competitive edge, as well as the option to download lessons offline.

TOFU Learn: For those who feel like Skritter isn’t worth the cost, TOFU Learn may be just what you’re looking for. This free app could be a suitable alternative and a good way to improve your vocabulary and help you learn to write Chinese characters.

Skritter: Skritter is the app for those who are serious about learning to write Chinese characters. Basically, you practice writing characters using your finger and your phone’s touch screen. It utilizes a combination of SRS flashcards and stroke recognition to help you remember how to write characters. It’s convenient to use and works great. Unfortunately, the price is on the higher side.

Drops: All the new verbs are 100% illustrated which reduces the chances of you using another language to identify and then translate. The short duration of each gamified session is both fun and addictive which is key in learning a new language. You do have to remember that Drops only offers verbs. There aren’t any grammar or expressions. So if you want to expand your vocabulary and know more words, this is the ideal app for you.

Memrise: Memrise is a free app that has tons of user-created courses. These can be anything from characters to restaurant items to slang words. It’s sort of a gamified flashcard system that you can use to learn new characters. It also uses mnemonics but the quality can vary significantly on a course by course basis.

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One		Center for Academic Success: University Learning/Testing Center Electronic Classroom Broadcast Video Productions Resource for Education Technology UTS - Media Equipment Services Distance Learning Electronic Classroom Instructional Photography & Graphics
Two		Information & Research Services Curriculum & Juvenile Collection LACiC - Latin American and Caribbean Center Government Documents GIS-RS Center & Teaching Lab Maps & Imagery User Statistics
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Six		Quiet Study Space Group Study Rooms General Collection HJ-L & P-Z Oversized Books
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Eight		Library Administration Collection Management Digital Collections Center

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One		Circulation Course Reserves Intercampus/Interlibrary Loan Information and Research Services Center for Excellence in Writing Communication Arts Studio Computer Labs/Copiers
Two		Microforms Periodicals Juvenile Collection Oversize Collection Video Collection Government Documents Reference Workroom Reference Collection Copiers
Three		General Collection, A-Z Library Administration

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