Introduction to the Chinese Language

Explore the basics of Chinese Mandarin

China’s economy has grown at one of the fastest rates in the last two decades and is influencing entertainment, economics, and business. Being able to speak Mandarin, even at a basic level, can give you an advantage in a number of areas.

On this three-week course from Universiti Malaya, you’ll learn the foundations of the Chinese language. Once you’ve completed this course, you’ll be able to communicate in Mandarin on a basic level, from introducing yourself and others to forming simple sentences about familiar topics.

Discover Chinese pronunciation through the Pinyin system

Chinese can be a difficult language to learn for native English speakers as it’s not a phonetic language, meaning that the pronunciation is not related to the Chinese characters. To overcome this, the phonetic system known as Pinyin is used.

You’ll start by looking at Pinyin and learning how to pronounce the main sounds of Chinese. You’ll also explore the four tones in Chinese that represent the pitch and direction of your voice as you say a syllable. Different tones can drastically change the meaning of a sentence so it’s important to understand these nuances.

Learn to introduce yourself in Mandarin

When meeting people, it’s vital that you can introduce yourself and discuss and understand basic details about yourself and others.

On this course, you’ll build your foundation in Chinese by learning the basics such as giving your name, nationality, and occupation. You’ll also explore pronouns and numbers in Chinese.

Build simple sentences about family and your surroundings

During the last week of this course, you’ll grow your knowledge of Chinese by focusing on talking about your family. You’ll learn how to introduce your family members, as well as the grammar needed to properly talk about family.

This course is designed for anyone interested in learning Chinese. As this is an introductory course, you do not need any previous experience to join.