Yue
Cantonese 粵語/粤语 廣東話/广东话
Yuht Yúh/Jyut6 jyu5 (Yue) written in traditional Chinese (left) and simplified Chinese (right) characters
Spoken in	China, Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh), Vietnam, Canada, United States, United Kingdom and other countries where Cantonese migrants have settled.
Region	in China: the Pearl River Delta (central Guangdong; Hong Kong, Macau); the eastern and southern Guangxi; parts of Hainan;
Ethnicity	Cantonese people (Han Chinese)
Native speakers	56 million  (1984)[1] (no recent data available)
Language family	Sino-Tibetan Sinitic Chinese Ping–Yue Yue
Dialects	Yuehai (Cantonese) Siyi (Taishanese) Gao-Yang Yong-Xun Goulou Luo-Guang Qin-Lian Wu-Hua Hainan Yue
Writing system	Traditional Chinese Simplified Chinese
Official status
Official language in	Hong Kong and Macau (de facto, though officially referred to as "Chinese"; Cantonese and occasionally Mandarin are used in government). Recognised regional language in Suriname.
Language codes
ISO 639-3	yue
This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters.

Yue,^{[note 1]} commonly known as Cantonese,^{[note 2]} is a primary branch of Chinese spoken in southern China.

The issue of whether Yue is a language in its own right or a dialect of a single Chinese language depends on conceptions of what a language is. Like the other branches of Chinese, Yue is considered a dialect for ethnic, political, and cultural reasons, but it is also considered a distinct language because of linguistic reasons. Spoken Cantonese is mutually unintelligible with other varieties of Chinese, though intelligible to a certain degree in its written form.

The areas of China with the highest concentration of speakers are the provinces of Guangdong and (eastern) Guangxi and the regions of Hong Kong and Macau. There are also substantial Cantonese- and Taishanese-speaking minorities overseas in Southeast Asia, Canada, Australia, and the United States.^[2]

Names[link]

The prototypical use of the name "Cantonese" in English is for the Guangzhou (Canton) dialect of Yue,^[3] but it is commonly used for Yue as a whole. To avoid confusion, academic texts may call the primary branch of Chinese Yue,^[4][5] following the Mandarin pinyin spelling, and either restrict "Cantonese" to its common usage as the dialect of Guangzhou, or avoid the term "Cantonese" altogether and distinguish Yue from Canton or Guangzhou dialect.

In Chinese, people of Hong Kong, of Macau, and Cantonese immigrants abroad^{[clarification needed]} usually call the Yue language Gwóngdùng wá [kʷɔ̌ːŋ tʊ́ŋ wǎː] (廣東話) "speech of Guangdong".^{[note 3]} People of Guangdong and Guangxi do not use that term, but rather Yuht Yúh [jỳt jy̬ː] (粵語) "Yue language". They also use baahk wá [pàːk wǎː] (白話) on its own to refer to the Guangzhou dialect. It is also used to refer to Yue dialects in Guangxi,^[6] as for example in an expression like "南宁白话", which means the baak waa of Nanning.

History[link]

Relation to Classical Chinese[link]

Since the pronunciation of all modern varieties of Chinese is different from Old Chinese or Middle Chinese, characters that once rhymed in poetry may no longer do so today. Some linguists agree to some extent that Cantonese is closer to classical Chinese in its pronunciation and some grammar.^[7] Many poems that don't rhyme in Mandarin do so in Cantonese.^[7] Cantonese retains a flavor of these archaic and ancient languages, and it has been used to help with linguistic reconstruction.^[7]

Qin and Han[link]

In the Qin Dynasty Chinese troops moved southward and conquered the Baiyue territories, and many Han people began settling in the Lingnan area. This migration led to the Chinese language being spoken in the Lingnan area. After Zhao Tuo was made the Duke of Nanyue by the Qin Dynasty and given authority over the Nanyue region, many Han people entered the area and lived together with the Nanyue population, consequently affecting the lifestyle of the Nanyue people as well as stimulating the spread of the Chinese language.

Sui[link]

In the Sui Dynasty, North China was in a period of war and discontent, and many people moved southwards to avoid war, forming the first mass migration of Han people into the South. As the population in the Lingnan area dramatically rose, the Chinese language in the south developed significantly. Thus the Lingnan language began to develop more significant differences with central Chinese.

Tang[link]

Yue pronunciation and vocabulary are quite similar to the official language of the Tang dynasty,^[8] and its pronunciation and vocabulary has preserved some features and elements from the Middle Chinese that was spoken during the Tang.^[9] Dialectologists believe that migrants and exiled officials from the heart of the Tang brought their dialect to Guangdong.^[9] Remoteness and inefficient transport to Guangdong created an environment in which the language remained largely intact after it arrived.^[9]

Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing[link]

In the Song Dynasty, the differences between central Chinese and Yue became more significant, and the languages became more independent of one another. This trend continued during the Yuan and Ming dynasties.

Mid to late Qing[link]

In the late Qing, the dynasty had gone through a period of maritime ban under the Hai jin. Guangzhou remained one of the few cities that allowed trading with foreign countries, since the trade chamber of commerce was established there.^[10] Therefore, some foreigners learned Cantonese and some Imperial government officials spoke the Cantonese dialect of Yue, making the language very popular in Cantonese-speaking Guangzhou. Also, European control of Macau and Hong Kong had increased the exposure of Cantonese to the world.

Twentieth century[link]

In 1912, shortly after the fall of the Qing dynasty, revolutionary leaders including Sun Yat-sen met to choose a new national language to replace Classical Chinese. Mandarin Putonghua was then a northern dialect spoken by the Manchurian officials. Many perceived it as an 'impure form' of Chinese. Cantonese is said to have lost out by a small margin of the vote to Putonghua, though some historians dispute this.^[7]

The popularity of Cantonese-language media, Cantopop and the Hong Kong film industry, has since led to substantial exposure of Cantonese to China and the rest of Asia. On the Mainland, the national policy is to promote Putonghua. While the government does not prevent people from promoting local Cantonese language and culture, it does not support them. Occasionally there are news reports of children being punished for speaking Cantonese in schools.^[9]

Dialects[link]

A map of the main Yue dialects in China and Vietnam^{[citation needed]}. Yuehai (Y) is considered a single dialect, commonly called Cantonese. The Guinan varieties (G) are not particularly close.

The Yue language includes several dialects. In the classification of J.M. Campbell,^[11] they are:

• Cantonese proper, Guangfu (廣府話) or Yuehai (粵海話), which includes the language of Guangzhou and the surrounding areas of Zhongshan, Wuzhou, and Foshan, as well as Hong Kong and Macau;
• Sìyì (四邑話 Seiyap), exemplified by the Taishan dialect (台山話), also known as Taishanese, which was ubiquitous in American Chinatowns before ca 1970;
• Gao–Yang (高陽話), spoken in Yangjiang;
• Wu–Hua (吳化話 Ngfaa), spoken mainly in western Guangdong;
• Gou–Lou (勾漏話 Ngaulau), spoken in western Guangdong and eastern Guangxi, which includes the dialect of Yulin (Bobai);
• Yong–Xun (邕潯話 Jungcam), spoken mainly in Guangxi and its capital Nanning;
• Qin–Lian (欽廉話 Jamlim), spoken in southern Guangxi, which includes the Beihai dialect;
• Danzhou (儋州話), which includes the dialect of Changjiang
• Haihua (海話), the dialect of Lianjiang
• Dongguan (東莞話), spoken only by natives of Dongguan
• In parts of Vietnam bordering China, people often speak a Yuexi accent (粤西) called tiếng Nùng or tiếng Hải Phòng in Vietnamese.

The Yue dialects spoken in Guangxi Province are mutually intelligible with the Canton dialect. For instance, Wuzhou is about 120 miles upstream from Guangzhou, but its dialect is more like Cantonese spoken in Guangzhou, than is that of Taishan which is 60 miles southwest of Guangzhou and separated by several rivers from it.^[5] Formerly Pinghua (廣西平話), which is not mutually intelligible with the Canton dialect spoken in central Guangxi, was classified as Yue in China, but it was designated a separate primary branch of Chinese by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in the 1980s,^[12] a classification generally followed in the west.

The Canton/Guangzhou dialect of Yuehai is the prestige dialect and social standard of Yue, and historically the word "Cantonese" has referred specifically to this dialect.

Mandarin is the medium of instruction in the state education system in Mainland China but in Chinese schools in Hong Kong and Macau, Cantonese is the oral language of instruction. It is used extensively in Cantonese-speaking households, Cantonese-language media (Hong Kong films, television serials, and Cantopop), isolation from the other regions of China, local identity, and the non-Mandarin speaking Cantonese diaspora in Hong Kong and abroad give the language a unique identity. Most wuxia films from Canton are filmed originally in Yue and then dubbed or subtitled in Mandarin, English, or both.

Cantonese dialect[link]

The Cantonese dialect is the prestige dialect of Guangdong province, and along with English as the official language of Hong Kong. It is the most widely spoken dialect of Yue, spoken in Canton (Guangzhou), Hong Kong, and Macau, and is the lingua franca of not only Guangdong province, but of overseas Cantonese emigrants, though in many areas abroad it is numerically second to the Taishanese dialect of Yue.

Phonology[link]

See Cantonese phonology for the sounds of the Guangzhou–Hong Kong dialect, and Taishanese for the phonology of that dialect.

Yue development and usage[link]

The area coloured in red shows the Cantonese-speaking region in areas claimed by the People's Republic of China.

Usage[link]

By law, Mandarin Chinese (Putonghua 普通话 or guoyu 国语) is the standard language of mainland China and Taiwan and is taught nearly universally as a supplement to local languages such as Cantonese in Guangdong. Yue is the de facto official language of Hong Kong (along with English) and Macau (along with Portuguese), though legally the official language is just "Chinese". Yue is also one of the main languages in many overseas Chinese communities including Australia, Southeast Asia, North America, and Europe. Many of these emigrants or their ancestors originated from Guangdong. In addition, these immigrant communities formed before the widespread use of Mandarin, or they are from Hong Kong where Mandarin is not commonly used. The prestige dialect of Yue is the Guangzhou dialect. In Hong Kong, colloquial Cantonese often incorporates English words due to historical British influences.

Development[link]

Yue is in some respects a more conservative language than Mandarin. For example, Yue has retained ancestral consonant endings that have been lost in Mandarin. Putonghua has 23 syllable rimes, while Cantonese has 59, leading Putonghua to rely heavily on compounding and context for meaning.^[9] For example, because of the larger number of syllable finals, the Cantonese Yue transcription of David Beckham's family name uses two characters (碧咸 bik1haam4), while Putonghua's uses four (貝克漢姆 bèikèhànmǔ).^[9] On the other hand, Yue has lost distinctions in the initial and medial consonants which Mandarin has retained, and Wu Chinese has preserved the three series of plosive initials from Middle Chinese that both Mandarin and Yue have reduced to two.

Variations[link]

The Taishan dialect, which in the U.S. nowadays is heard mostly spoken by Chinese actors in old American TV shows and movies (e.g. Hop Sing on Bonanza), is more conservative than Cantonese. It has preserved the initial /n/ sound of words, whereas many post-World War II-born Hong Kong Cantonese speakers have changed this to an /l/ sound ("ngàuh lām" instead of "ngàuh nām" for "beef brisket" 牛腩) and more recently drop the "ng-" initial (so that it changes further to "àuh lām"); this seems to have arisen from some kind of street affectation as opposed to systematic phonological change^{[citation needed]}. The common word for "who" in Taishan is "sŭe" (誰), which is the same character used in Mandarin, whereas Cantonese uses the classical word "bīn go" (邊個), meaning which one.

Sound[link]

Yue sounds quite different from Mandarin, mainly because it has a different set of syllables. The rules for syllable formation are different; for example, there are syllables ending in non-nasal consonants (e.g. "lak"). It also has different tones and more of them than Mandarin. Canton dialect is generally considered to have 6 romanization tones, as reflected in most romanization schemes such as Jyutping, Yale, Cantonese Pinyin. According to other analyses, the number of tones may also be 7 or 8. The choice mainly depends on whether a traditional distinction between a high-level and a high-falling tone is observed; the two tones in question have largely merged into a single, high-level tone, especially in Hong Kong Cantonese, which has tended to simplify traditional Chinese tones.^{[citation needed]} Many (especially older) descriptions of the Cantonese sound system record a higher number of tones, 9. However, the extra tones differ only in that they end in p, t, or k; otherwise they can be modeled identically.^[13]

Yue preserves many syllable-final sounds that Mandarin has lost or merged. For example, the characters 裔, 屹, 藝, 憶, 譯, 懿, 誼, 肄, 翳, 邑, and 佚 are all pronounced "yì" in Mandarin, but they are all different in Yue (Cantonese jeoi6, ngat6, ngai6, jik1, jik6, ji3, ji4, ji6, ai3, jap1, and jat6, respectively). Like Hakka and Min Nan, Yue has preserved the final consonants [-m, -n, -ŋ -p, -t, -k] from Middle Chinese, while the Mandarin final consonants have been reduced to [-n, -ŋ]. The final consonants of Yue match those of Middle Chinese with very few exceptions. For example, lacking the syllable-final sound "m"; the final "m" and final "n" from older varieties of Chinese have merged into "n" in Mandarin, e.g. Cantonese "taahm" (譚) and "tàahn" (壇) versus Mandarin tán; "yìhm" (鹽) and "yìhn" (言) versus Mandarin yán; "tìm" (添) and "tìn" (天) versus Mandarin tiān; "hàhm" (含) and "hòhn" (寒) versus Mandarin hán. The examples are too numerous to list. Nasals can be independent syllables in Yue words, e.g. Cantonese "ńgh" (五) "five", and "m̀h" (唔) "not", even though such type of syllables did not exist in Middle Chinese.

Differences also arise from Mandarin's relatively recent sound changes. One change, for example, palatalized [kʲ] with [tsʲ] to [tɕ], and is reflected in historical Mandarin romanizations, such as Peking (Beijing), Kiangsi (Jiangxi), and Fukien (Fujian). This distinction is still preserved in Yue. For example, 晶, 精, 經 and 京 are all pronounced as "jīng" in Mandarin, but in Yue, the first pair is pronounced "jīng", and the second pair "gīng".

A more drastic example, displaying both the loss of coda plosives and the palatization of onset consonants, is the character 學 ("learn"), pronounced *ɣæwk in Middle Chinese. Its modern pronunciations in Yue, Hakka, Hokkien, Vietnamese, Korean, and Japanese are "hohk", "hók" (pinjim), "ha̍k" (Pe̍h-ōe-jī), học (although a Sino-Vietnamese word, it is used in daily vocabulary), 학 hak (Sino-Korean), and gaku (Sino-Japanese), respectively, while the pronunciation in Mandarin is xué [ɕɥɛ̌].

However, the Mandarin vowel system is somewhat more conservative than that of Yue, or at least the Cantonese dialect of Yue, in that many diphthongs preserved in Mandarin have merged or been lost in Yue. Also, Mandarin makes a three-way distinction among alveolar, alveolo-palatal, and retroflex fricative consonants, distinctions that are not made by modern Cantonese. For example, jiang (將) and zhang (張) are two distinct syllables in Mandarin or old Yue, but in modern Cantonese Yue they have the same sound, "jeung1". The loss of distinction between the alveolar and the alveolopalatal sibilants in Cantonese occurred in the mid-19th centuries and was documented in many Cantonese dictionaries and pronunciation guides published prior to the 1950s. A Tonic Dictionary of the Chinese Language in the Canton Dialect by Williams (1856), writes: “The initials "ch" and "ts" are constantly confounded, and some persons are absolutely unable to detect the difference, more frequently calling the words under "ts" as "ch", than contrariwise.” A Pocket Dictionary of Cantonese by Cowles (1914) adds: “s initial may be heard for sh initial and vice versa.”

There are clear sound correspondences in the tones. For example, a fourth-tone (low falling tone) word in Yue is usually second tone (rising tone) in Mandarin. This can be partly explained by their common descent from Middle Chinese, still with its different dialects. One way of counting tones gives Cantonese nine tones, Mandarin four, and Late Middle Chinese eight. Within this system, Mandarin merged the so-called "yin" and "yang" tones except for the Ping (平, flat) category, while Yue not only preserved these, but split one of them into two over time. Also, within this system, Yue and Wu are the only Chinese languages known to have split a tone, rather than merge two or more of them, since the time of Late Middle Chinese.^{[dubious – discuss]}

See also[link]

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

	China portal
	Hong Kong portal
	Language portal

• Sidney Lau romanisation
• Hong Kong Government Cantonese Romanisation
• Cantonese Pinyin
• Jyutping (LSHK)
• Yale Romanization
• Written Cantonese
• Cantonese grammar
• Written Chinese
• Chinese input methods for computers

Further reading[link]

• Oi-Kan Yue Hashimoto (2011). Studies in Yue Dialects 1: Phonology of Cantonese. Princeton/Cambridge Studies in Chinese Linguistics. 3. Cambridge University Press. pp. 780. ISBN 0-521-18982-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=hWf9T41DopIC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 1st of March, 2012. 
• Oi-kan Yue Hashimoto (1972). Phonology of Cantonese. Princeton/Cambridge Studies in Chinese Linguistics. 3. Cambridge University Press. pp. 755. ISBN 0-521-08442-3. http://books.google.com/books?id=WY48AAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 1st of March, 2012. 

Notes[link]

1. ^ General Chinese: Yuet-qiuu. Pronounced /ˈjuːeɪ/ or /juːˈeɪ/ in English. ("Yueh", Webster's Third International Dictionary)
2. ^ In English, the name "Cantonese" generally refers specifically to the dialect of Guangzhou (Canton), which has spread to Hong Kong and Macau and emerged as the prestige dialect of Yue. "Cantonese" in this sense is frequently contrasted with other Yue dialects such as Taishanese, and that convention will be followed in this article.
3. ^ 廣東話: Yale Gwóngdùng wá, Jyutping Gwong2 dung1 waa2, Mandarin pinyin Guǎngdōng huà

References[link]

External links[link]

Yue Chinese edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

• Profile and Linguistic Map of Cantonese

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Michael Wong Kong Leong (Chinese: 王光良; pinyin: Wáng Guāngliáng), born August 30, 1970, is a Malaysian Chinese singer and composer. Wong began his singing career in a duo with Victor Wong. The pair had attained notable success in Taiwan, but in a mutual agreement the two split in 2000. Wong has released five solo albums, the third being his breakthrough album Fairy Tale.^[1] He also enjoys success as an actor in Chinese dramas and movies.

Biography[link]

Born in Ipoh, Malaysia to a Hakka family of two as the first child amidst one young sister

Wong, as a devoted Catholic, often sang in the church choir during his school days and was once a choir teacher at a church. Graduating from Sam Tet School in Ipoh, Wong often participated in musical performances in school and has been writing his own songs since secondary school. After he moved to Kuala Lumpur to pursue a course in computer engineering, his interest in the world of music and music composition began to grow.

Wu Yin Liang Pin (無印良品)[link]

Entering from up to 30 singing competitions in town in a single year, where he managed to surface as the winner several times, were also the stepping stones to his successful singing career today. Finally noticed by Asia Pacific Music in the Pioneer karaoke contest, he started to learn Audio Engineering at Ocean Institute Of Audio Engineering during his contract with Asia Pacific Music as a recording artist. After his graduation, Michael produced his first album with two other college mates, Chan and Tan. With the joining of Victor Wong as a singer during that period, they submitted the album, with the theme song written by Michael, "掌心“ (The Palm) to Rock Records, which in turn, signed them up almost immediately. They then formed a duo group more commonly known in Malaysia as Michael & Victor or Guang Liang Pin Guan (光良品冠). In Taiwan and China, they were mostly known as Wu Yin Liang Pin (無印良品), a name given by their record label in Taiwan.

The split[link]

The duo then arguably became the first Malaysians to attain much success in the music scene in Taiwan. Their albums managed to hit the top notch both locally and in Taiwan as their debut album went platinum in both Malaysia and Taiwan. After a few splendid and successful years together as a duo in the Chinese music scene, during which the pair bagged countless awards for their success, Michael and Victor then decided it was time to part cordially and go their own ways in the music scene as solo singers in year 2000.^[1]

Solo career[link]

Not long after the announcement, Wong worked hard to compose and write new songs for his new solo album, Michael's First Album (第一次個人創作專輯; Dì Yī Cì Gè Rén Chuàng Zuò Zhuān Jí), which performed above expectation.^[1] Although Wong's company promptly decided that he should produce his first solo album on his own, he did not agree straight away. This is because he was not confident that he was skillful enough to produce one whole album all by himself. However, after much contemplating, Wong finally accepted the challenge and was successful in breaking away from the Michael & Victor mould. Other than working on his own album, Wong also found time to co-produce other singers' albums like Rene Liu and Fish Leong.

Wong released his second album, Ray of Light (光芒; Guāng Máng), in November 2002. It then became the number one album, in sales, in Taiwan.^[1]

[edit] Fairy Tale

After releasing two solo albums on his own, Wong's fans had to wait another two years before he finally launched his much-anticipated album, Fairytale (Tong Hua). The first single from this album, "Fairy Tale," Wong wrote and composed by himself. Wong, who is more of a composer and hardly wrote lyrics, asked about 30 lyricists for suggestions for this particular song. After finally adding a finishing touch to the song with lyrics he wrote himself, he then left it to be arranged and produced by the experienced Japanese producer Taichi Nakamura. After rejecting the first few songs he short-listed himself for the album with his sense of perfection, Wong eventually re-selected some songs himself and finally rooted for his ten favourite songs to be cut into the album, of which six were co-written by himself. His two years of hard work finally paid off when this album immediately attained success, and is critically acclaimed to be Wong's best-selling album yet.^[1]

"Fairy Tale" has proved to be his strongest single yet by shooting up to No. 1 immediately after it was released in January 2005, making it to the top of the download counter Baidu 500 for 15 weeks as Asia was swept by the "Fairy Tale Tornado". The single is arguably the most successful Chinese language song in the 21st Century. As of 2007 it is still among the top in the karaoke charts.^[1]

New contracts[link]

Michael Wong's contract with Rock Records ended on 31 Dec 2004 but he decided to continue to promote for the album, Fairy Tale, released Jan 2005. After the promotion period finished, Wong has made the biggest decision in his singing career by announcing his departure from his long time recording company, Rock Records, in July 2005. After 10 years being contracted with Rock Records, Wong is now officially signed to Amusic. The reason of his departure from Rock Records was because Rock Records believed that since his music was so simple, it was not music. Thus, they ignored him. On TV, someone had claimed that Wong's music was not music due to its simplicity, causing the singer grief. Wong's unstable relationship with Rock Records has encouraged his decision to leave for Amusic. When pressed for comments, Wong firmly and merely stated that he thanked Rock Records for giving him his big break.

Acting career[link]

His talents and works in the music world aside, Wong also happens to be a worthy actor. Acting alongside Taiwanese singer Richie Ren, fellow Malaysian singer, Ah Niu and famous Cantonese singer/actress, Sammi Cheng, Wong made his debut in the big screen in movie Summer Holiday in year 2000. Next to that, Wong also acted in several TV drama series in Taiwan, such as White Romance (starring alongside Karena Lam), Wintry Night 2, and several more. Besides that, Wong also did a stunning act in Taiwanese director Su Chaopin's debut comedy movie, BTS. Besides movies and drama series, Wong also starred in a musical stage drama in Taiwan, Mr. Wing, in August 2005.

[edit] Commitment

He has released his new fourth album, entitled 《約定》(Yue Ding / Commitment), which sold 1.5 million copies in less than one month. This is a best collection of many of his past works. There would be a total of approximately 17 tracks on this album. Three self-penned new songs are featured in this new album, which are titled 《約定》("Commitment"), 《都是你》(Dou Shi Ni / "It's You") and 《擁抱我》(Yong Bao Wo / "Embrace Me"). The rest of the album will be filled with songs which he wrote for other singers like 《勇氣》[(Yong Qi / "Courage")-original singer: Fish Leong)], 《我等你》[(Wo Deng Ni / "I'm Waiting For You")-original singer: Rene Liu)] and 《戀》[(Lian / "Love")-original singer: Angelica Lee)]. He also included the songs he wrote and sang when he was still part of the duo Michael and Victor.

Owing to the overwhelming success of Tong Hua, some critics have expressed their concerns that Tong Hua might only be Wong's one-hit-wonder. His critics were proven wrong as the sales of his fourth album, Yue Ding, exceeded expectations by selling more than a million copies worldwide in a month's time. Wong's fanbase has grown tremendously and has gained much popularity globally. His success as a singer and songwriter has earned him countless awards from Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Malaysia.

Further success[link]

Gaining more and more recognition globally, Wong was recently appointed as Tourism Malaysia's ambassador. Earlier before that, Wong's participation in A Music records label in Hong Kong has also gained him more recognition in Asia. He appeared as a guest at the concert of famous Cantonese singer Leon Lai in October 2005.

On June 6, 2006, Wong made it into the Malaysia Book of Records as the Malaysian Chinese Male Composer with the highest number of awards and also for The Best Selling Chinese Album (Tong Hua). Wong has gathered 44 awards, 23 of them for his hit song Tong Hua.

Wong has also managed to make it to the nominees' list of the 17th Golden Melody Awards, Taiwan’s equivalent of the Grammys. Wong was holding up against fellow Taiwan-based Malaysian singer Penny Tai and other musical talents like Hu Defu, Chen Xiaoxia, and Yu Yang in the Best Composer Category. Although the award went to fellow Malaysian singer Penny Tai, Wong expresses that he feels very grateful and lucky to be nominated in this prestigious award ceremony.

Commitment: Fulfilled[link]

In the past, Wong always felt puzzled and uncertain whenever his fans urged him with the question, "When are you finally having a concert?" Due to circumstances in the past, Wong had never held his own solo concert before and always tried to soothe his fans by making promises to them that he will, one day, finally stage his own solo concert some time soon. And therefore, in year 2006, he finally got the chance to fulfill the commitment between him and his fans.

With just half a year in the Hong Kong music scene, Wong, who gained more recognition in Hong Kong, was given a golden opportunity to stage his own solo concert. Not only that it was his first time, but it was also to be held in the famous Hong Kong Coliseum where almost every Chinese singer dreams to stage their own concert. Apparently, he is the first Malaysian singer to do so. Although he was worried about the turn up that night, Wong's anxiety was unfounded because his concert tickets were sold out after only being available for purchase for 5 days. Wong was deeply surprised and delighted and thanked his fans greatly for their utmost support to his music. Wong completed his much-anticipated first solo concert in the Hong Kong Coliseum on the 29th of March, and the success of the whole concert was undeniable. His concert was entitled "Michael's First Fairy Tale Concert 2006". Wong has managed to make his mark in everybody's heart with his love for music. After that, he would return to his homeland, Malaysia, in September, to stage a concert there as well.

His second concert, titled "Michael's Commitment Concert Malaysia 2006", was held on 1 September in the Putra Indoor Stadium in Malaysia. After about a few weeks of selling tickets, all were sold out. Due to the overwhelming response, Wong and his company decided to stage his concert there for two nights. Wong was very delighted and grateful that his fans were so supportive and stated that he hoped these two concerts would allow him to introduce his country, Malaysia, to his fans from other countries, playing the role as Tourism Malaysia's envoy. His two shows in Malaysia guaranteed a fun-filled night where fans enjoyed Wong's soothing, self-written songs.

Wong released a compilation called Michael 1996–2006 the greatest hits on May 16, 2007.^[2]

On November 9, 2007, Wong released his 5th solo studio album, Never Apart.^[3]

31 July 2009 he released his First Digital Single which contained 2 Cantonese songs called: 店小二 (Dian Xiao Er) and 清水 (Qing Shui). 右手邊 (You Shou Bian) and 美好時光 (Mei Hao Shi Guang) where also included.

In October 2010, Wong represented Malaysia and performed at the 7th Asia Song Festival, organised by Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange, at the Seoul Olympic Stadium.^[4]

It's A Small World[link]

In 2008, he was asked to perform the Mandarin version of "It's A Small World" at the Grand Opening of It's A Small World in Hong Kong Disneyland, but after strong demand from the crowd, sang "Tong Hua" instead.

Discography[link]

Solo albums[link]

• Michael's First Album (第一次個人創作專輯; Dì Yī Cì Gè Rén Chuàng Zuò Zhuān Jí) – May 10, 2001
• Ray of Light (光芒; Guāng Máng) – November 8, 2002
• Fairy Tale (童話; Tóng Huà) – January 21, 2005
• Commitment (約定; Yuē Dìng) – March 3, 2006
• Never Apart (不會分離; Bú Huì Fēn Lí) – November 9, 2007^[3]
• Right Hand Side EP (右手邊; Yòu Shǒu Biān) – September 19, 2008
• First Digital Single – July 31, 2009
• So Naive (太天真; (Tai Tian Zhen ) – September 9, 2010

Other[link]

• I Believe (我要跟隨祂; Wǒ Yào Gēn Suí Tā), compilation of Christian music – Released 1994
• The World Shines Because of Love (世界因愛發光; Shì Jiè Yīn Ài Fā Guāng), EP album – December 1997
• "Michael 1996–2006 the greatest hits – May 16, 2007^[2]

Filmography[link]

Movies[link]

• The Threesome : The Movie (三人行音樂電影; Sān Rén Xíng Yin Yuè Diàn Ying) – 1998
• Summer Holiday (夏日麼麼茶; Xià Rì Me Me Chá)- 2000
• BTS (愛情靈藥; Ài Qíng Líng Yào) – 2001
• Like A Slave (英勇戰士俏姑娘; Yīng Yǒng Shì Zhan Shì Qiào Gū Niáng) – 2005
• Purple Mirage(紫色梦幻;"Zǐ Sè Mèng Huàn") – 2006

Dramas[link]

• White Love (白色戀曲; Báisè Liàn Qu) – 2001
• A Change of Fate (時來運轉; Shí Lái Yùn Zhuan) – 2001
• Good Luck,Angel (王牌天使; Wáng Pái Tiān Shi) – 2003
• Love Storm (狂愛龍捲風; Kuáng Ài Lóng Juǎn Fēng) – 2003
• Wintry Night 2 (寒夜續曲; Hán Yè Xù Qu) – 2003
• Love.18 – 2008

Musical Stage Drama :

• Mr. Wing ~ a romantic rhapsody (幸運兒; Xìng Yùn Ér) – 2005

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official site
• Michael Wong at Rock Records Japan
• Michael Wong discography at MusicBrainz

Pan Yue (Chinese: 潘岳; pinyin: Pān Yuè) was born in 1960 in Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China, is one of the Vice Ministers for the Ministry of Environmental Protection in China.

Biography[link]

Pan Yue (Chinese: 潘岳; pinyin: Pān Yuè) was born in 1960 in Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China, the son of a military engineer.

He has a background in journalism, having started his career in 1982 on the China Environment Journal, where he worked until 1986. He rose to become the deputy chief editor of China Youth Daily between 1989-93 before becoming director of CYLC, Central Committee, China Youth Research Center.^[1]

Between 1994 and 2003 he moved through a series of deputy directorships at the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission; the State Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision; the Economic Restructuring Office of the State Council.

He was elected to in 2003. He is the number one deputy director (第一副局长) of the Chinese State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA, Chinese: 国家环境保护总局). In March 2008 SEPA's name was changed to the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Pan's title became Vice Minister.

BusinessWeek online has described him as 'a courageous voice for a greener China.' "Pan has taken on some of China's biggest industries over their pollution records and forced them to clean up," said BusinessWeek in a July 2005, interview.^[2]

Pan believes the fundamental cause of the global environmental crisis is the capitalist system. "The environmental crisis has become a new means of transferring the economic crisis," he said.^[3]

He was named Person of the Year 2007 by British left-of-center weekly politics magazine New Statesman.^[4] It labeled Pan "...a rare, if not lone, public voice within the Chinese government warning that disaster threatens unless development is checked" and quoted him as saying "This miracle will end soon because the environment can no longer keep pace."

Veteran China journalist and current editor of Chinadialogue.net Isabel Hilton has characterised the massive project Pan has taken on in championing a green China: "He is trying to move a mountain rather than climb it."

References[link]

External links[link]

• Spiegel online interview: The Chinese Miracle Will End Soon

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2009)

This Three Kingdoms-related article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. Please help rewrite it to explain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective. (October 2009)

Yue Lin (died 257) was a military general of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was the son of Yue Jin. Yue Lin actively campaigned against Shu Han. During Zhuge Dan's rebellion, he ended up being attacked and killed by Zhuge for accepting a certain secret letter from Jia Chong.

See also[link]

• List of people of the Three Kingdoms

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Jacky Cheung 張學友
Jacky Cheung, January 2007
Chinese name	張學友 (Traditional)
Chinese name	张学友 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Zhāng Xúeyǒu (Mandarin)
Jyutping	Zoeng1 Hok6-jau5 (Cantonese)
Ancestry	Tianjin, China[1]
Origin	Hong Kong
Born	(1961-07-10) 10 July 1961 (age 50)[2] Hong Kong
Other name(s)	God of songs[3]
Occupation	Singer Very occasional Songwriter Actor
Genre(s)	Cantopop, Mandopop, Operatic pop, Jazz, R&B
Instrument(s)	Vocals, guitar
Voice type(s)	Baritone,[4] Tenor,[5] occasional falsetto[6]
Years active	1985 – present
Spouse(s)	May Lo Mei-mei (羅美薇)
Official Website	www.jackycheung.hk
Awards Hong Kong Film Awards Best Supporting Actor 1989 As Tears Go By Best Original Film Song 2006 Perhaps Love Golden Horse Awards Best Supporting Actor 1990 The Swordsman Other awards World Music Awards Best-Selling Asian Artist 1995, 1996

Jacky Cheung (born 10 July 1961) is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter and actor. The Chinese language media refers to him, Aaron Kwok, Andy Lau and Leon Lai as the Cantopop Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王),^[7] with more than 60 million records sold as of 2000.^[8]

Biography[link]

Cheung is known for his baritone voice.^[9] On 15 February 1996 in London, he married Hong Kong actress May Lo Mei-mei, with whom he has two daughters.^[10] Cheung is also nicknamed "god of Songs" (歌神), but he is the second person to hold this title, after former Cantopop singer Sam Hui.^[3][11] In an interview with Ray Cordeiro (Uncle Ray), Cheung stated that the title was more appropriate for Hui than for him, since he actually wrote and popularized songs.^[12]

Career[link]

Music[link]

Jacky Cheung in concert, January 2008.

Cheung originally started working as a reservation officer for the Cathay Pacific airline.^[13] His music career started when he won the Amateur 18-Hong Kong district singing contest in 1984 with the song Fatherland (大地恩情).^[14] He ousted more than 10,000 other contestants.^[13] After winning the contest, he was signed by the then Polygram Records, now Universal Music Group.^[13] Although encouraged by a bright start, he was not able to achieve immediate supremacy in Cantopop, then dominated by Leslie Cheung, Alan Tam, Anita Mui and Danny Chan. In 1985 he won his first two major awards together with the 1985 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards and the 1985 Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards.^[15][16]

	"Half moon (月半彎)" noicon A transitional song from the golden age to the Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王) era by Jacky Cheung
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In 1991 he released the song "Loving You More Every Day" (每天愛你多一些), a translated version of the Japanese Southern All Stars hit, Midsummer's Fruit (真夏の果実). The album True Love Expression (真情流露) in 1992, as well as the subsequent release, Love Sparks (愛火花) in 1992, achieved audited sales of over 400,000 copies in Hong Kong alone.^[17]

His subsequent albums included 1993 "Me and You" (我與你) and 1994 "Born to be wild" (餓狼傳說). In the 1994 Billboard Music Awards in the US, he was named the most popular singer in Asia.^[18] He received numerous music awards both in Hong Kong and elsewhere, including the best-selling Chinese singer in the World Music Awards for two consecutive years in 1995 and 1996 held at Monaco.^[19] Cheung was also elected as one of the world's Top Ten Outstanding Young Persons in 1999.^[18]

Amongst his hit songs, some of his most famous were Amour, "Just want to spend my life with you" (只想一生跟你走) and "Goodbye Kiss" (吻别). The album The Goodbye Kiss (吻别) was one of the best-selling albums of all time, achieving more sales in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia than ever attained before, with an astounding 4 million copies sold in 1993 alone.^[20] The 4 million sold worldwide allowed him to be the first Asian artist to get on PolyGram's annual Top 10 roster.^[21] The album was also instrumental in helping Cheung break into the mandopop market. Due to these great songs and albums, Cheung is generally considered to be the pre-eminent member of the Four Heavenly Kings of Cantopop. He is regarded by some sources as the best singer of the four.^[22]

In 1995, Cheung staged his record-breaking 100-show world tour titled "Yau Hok Yau" (友學友), literally a pun of "friendship Jacky Cheung" reusing the same Chinese characters found in his name.^[23] The tour started with 34 shows from 8 April to 9 June at the Hong Kong Coliseum. Then the tour continued at Perth Brisbane Australia and returned to Taipei and mainland China.^[24] It then expanded to Madison Square Garden^[25] in the US, different parts of Europe, Singapore, India, Malaysia and Japan.^[24] He was regarded as the new Michael Jackson by Business Week.

His successful music and acting career has made him one of Hong Kong's icons. Cheung was elected by Time Magazine as one of the "25 most influential people in the New Hong Kong" in 1996.^[13][14]

In 1999, he was named one of the 10 Outstanding Young Persons of the World by the Junior Chamber International, a worldwide federation of young professionals and entrepreneurs.^[18] In 2000 he was awarded by RTHK, the Golden Needle Award.^[26] This award, the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award, recognized outstanding contributions to the music industry.

Cheung won the Best Selling Cantonese Album Award in the Hong Kong IFPI Awards of 2005 with his live album, Jacky Live Performance. In the fast-changing scene of canto-pop, Cheung has been able to maintain his popularity and sales power for more than 20 years after his debut, which is unparalleled in the history of Hong Kong pop music.

In 2007, Cheung staged his "Year of Jacky Cheung World Tour 2007". The tour started on 18 February 2007 at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. When the tour ended in Hong Kong on 3 February 2008 after touring 58 cities around the world, a total of 105 shows had been given, attracting more than 2 million fans. 105 became the highest number of shows in a tour by a Chinese artist, breaking the previous record of 100, which was also set by Cheung previously.^[27]

Duets[link]

	"In Love With You" (1994) noicon Cheung's collaboration with Regine Velasquez is one of Cheung's best duets.
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Cheung not only performs solo but often in duets with female singers. A duet with fellow Asian Superstar Regine Velasquez on the song "In Love with You" was included in her multi-platinum album "Listen Without Prejudice". In 2008 Cheung and A-Mei, the popular Taiwanese singer, performed Zhu Fu ("Blessing") as a duet in a benefit concert for victims of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Other duet partners include:

• Priscilla Chan - "A Pair of Lonely Hearts" (一對寂寞的心)
• Faye Wong - "Love's Promise"
• Kelly Chen - "Waiting for Your Love"
• Anita Mui - "Love is Hard" （相愛很難）, (祝福)
• Shirley Kwan - ""Youngster No Love"" (年少無情)
• Coco Lee - (從頭到尾)
• Priscilla Chan - (愛和承諾), (接近)
• Sandy Lam - (日與夜)
• Vivian Chow - (留住秋色)
• Sarah Brightman - "There for Me"
• Reba McEntire - "For My Broken Heart"
• Regine Velasquez - "In Love With You"
• Cally Kwong - "Only Love Persists" (祇有情永在)
• Karen Tong - "Miss Each Other In the Wind & Rain" (相思風雨中)
• Vivian Lai - "Long Flow, Never Rests" (長流不息)
• He Ruhui - (似曾相識)
• Francesca Gao (高慧君) - (你最珍貴)
• Karen Tong - (情濃半生)
• Chen Jia Lu - (花與琴的流星(雪狼湖)) , (愛狼說(雪狼湖))

On stage musical[link]

In 1997 his work on the groundbreaking Cantonese broadway-style musical Snow.Wolf.Lake was enthusiastically received by both audiences and critics.^[7] Cheung not only played the male lead, but was also the artistic director for this production. The first female lead was played by Sandy Lam in Hong Kong and Nnadia Chan in Singapore. Kit Chan played the second female lead. They achieved 43 consecutive full-house performances at the gigantic Hung Hom Hong Kong Coliseum which remains the record today.^[28] In November 2004, Cheung and his concert manager, Florence Chan Suk-fan, worked on a revised Mandarin version of Snow, Wolf, Lake so as to bring it to a wider audience. The female leads this time were Evonne Hsu and Nnadia Chan respectively. The market budget alone exceeded HK$15 million.^[28] The estimated budget for this revised production was HK$100 million and the show premiered on 24 December 2004 in Beijing.^[29]

Acting[link]

Cheung's hand print an autograph at the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong.

While Cheung is known for his singing, he has also acted in many films. He received the Best Supporting Actor award in the 8th Hong Kong Film Awards for his work in As Tears Go By (1988) as well as the Best Supporting Actor Golden Horse Award for his work in Swordsman (1990).^[30][31] That same year he also collaborated with John Woo and Tony Leung in the film Bullet in the Head. For his work in July Rhapsody, he also received the Best Actor Award at the New Delhi Film Festival for his portrayal of the protagonist role. His song Perhaps Love, which serves as the theme song for the multi-award-winning film Perhaps Love, also won the Best Song Award at the 2005 Hong Kong Film Award and the CASH Best Song Award at the 2005/2006 CASH Gold Sail Music Awards. He also starred in Taiwanese mini-series called Love Scar with F4 member Jerry Yan and Karen Mok, where he acted as Jerry Yan's older brother.^[32]

In the 2004 released and Wong Ching-po directed triads drama film, Jiang Hu, Cheung played the role of Lefty, the best friend and right hand man of a crime boss, Hung Yan Chau, who is played by Andy Lau. The film includes several actors from the cast of Infernal Affairs.^[33]

Ceremonies and spokesperson[link]

Cheung was named the spokesperson for Hong Kong Disneyland in 2004. He took part in a number of large-scale marketing events organized by The Walt Disney Company and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, beginning with the hosting of a TV program, Magical World of Disneyland.^[34] He recorded a multi-lingual song for Hong Kong Disneyland, entitled One. The music video for One was filmed at Hong Kong Disneyland. He also recorded for the Hong Kong Disneyland: The Grand Opening Celebration Album.

In December 2006, Cheung performed live the theme song "Together Now" at the Opening Ceremony of the 15th Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.^[35] He was introduced as "the most popular Asian performer in the world".

In 2010, Cheung, Jane Zhang, and K'naan sang a Mandarin version of "Wavin' Flag (The Celebration Mix)" for the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Community[link]

In March 2009 he became the first Cantopop / Mandopop artist to contribute items to the Hard Rock franchise memorabilia collection.^[36] Items are to be exhibited at the Hard Rock hotel in Macau.^[36] A joint donation is also made to donate HK$600,000 to the Children's Cancer Foundation and ORBIS Macau.^[27] In September 2009, Cheung, as one of the super ambassadors of End Child Sexual Abuse Foundation (ECSAF) founded by Josephine Siao, attended the charity fund raising event for celebrating ECSAF’s 10th anniversary in Hong Kong.^[37]

Foreign domestic helper incident[link]

Cheung's maid was arrested for taking images of Cheung's children, in a case that sparked controversy among some domestic servants in Hong Kong. It was argued that Cheung overreacted and the sentence was disproportionate and the case was regarded by some as racial discrimination.^[38] The Philippines consulate soon announced that Cheung's family had employed 21 different maids in a three-year period and placed Cheung on a 'blacklist' that would prevent him from employing any Filipino maids in the future.^[39]

IFPI Awards (partial list)[link]

IFPI Gold Disc Award^[40]

• 1989 87'演唱會 Polygram
• 1990 絲絲記憶精選 Polygram

IFPI Platinum Disc Award

• 1985 Smile Polygram
• 1986 遙遠的她 Polygram
• 1987 相愛 Polygram
• 1987 Jacky Polygram
• 1988 昨夜夢魂中 Polygram
• 1990 給我親愛的 Polygram
• 1990 祇願一生愛一人 Polygram

IFPI Top 10 Sales Album

• 2003 Where is he 他在那裡 What's Music
• 2004 Black & White What's Music
• 2005 活出生命 Live 演唱會 What's Music

IFPI Top 10 Sales Artist

• 2005

IFPI Top Sales Album

• 2005 活出生命 Live 演唱會 What's Music

See also[link]

• Cinema of Hong Kong
• Music of Hong Kong

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jacky Cheung

• Jacky Cheung - Official website
• Jacky Cheung at the Internet Movie Database