3 ms·

kulpreet, not all the (ethnically) chinese people in the bay area are Chinese (citizens). I found that out first hand when I flew into SFO after a year+ in Chi

by mahmud 16y ago

kulpreet, not all the (ethnically) chinese people in the bay area are Chinese (citizens). I found that out first hand when I flew into SFO after a year+ in China. There is such a huge cultural difference between people born and raised in the mainland, and those from other ethnically Chinese but non-PRC communities that it's alienating sometimes. (I want MORE 广州人, dammit! I will forever consider SZ, DG and GZ home; Guangdong pride!) [Edit: Added qualifiers to disambiguate ;-]

sliverstorm 16y ago
> kulpreet, not all the chinese people in the bay area are Chinese. I understand what you are saying, but capitalizing a single letter is not really enough of a distinction to rely upon in casual conversation. For example, I will often intentionally describe an american-chinese friend as "Chinese" rather than "chinese", capitalizing the C as a way of signifying importance and respect in the same way you might say The White House or Stanford, rather than stanford. To many, "chinese" simply implies you are too lazy to capitalize the "C". (which is, conversely, why there is an implied value and respect associated with capitalizing) I hope that makes sense, it is a somewhat amorphous subject and as such difficult to articulate.
- mahmud 16y ago
  You're absolutely right. I just wasn't sure how else to distinguish between Chinese (citizens of the PRC), and diaspora Chinese (people of Chinese origin that are not PRC citizens) Ok, added qualifiers.
  - kulpreet 16y ago
    Actually, I think I'm wrong because I wrote 中国人, which literally implies a person from PRC. I'm still learning Chinese in school and I didn't know how to say "people of Chinese origin" haha
    - brianmwang 16y ago
      This may betray my own ignorance, but I believe 中国人 is perfectly fine for describing oneself even if you are not from the Mainland, such as in my case. I've hung around plenty of 1st generation Chinese folk from Taiwan and conversation seems to still use 中国人 as a general term, not as something specific only to Mainlanders. I suppose if you really wanted, you could use the term "Han Chinese", but that is in fact more ethnically specific than 中国人.

by mahmud 16y ago

sliverstorm 16y ago

> kulpreet, not all the chinese people in the bay area are Chinese. I understand what you are saying, but capitalizing a single letter is not really enough of a distinction to rely upon in casual conversation. For example, I will often intentionally describe an american-chinese friend as "Chinese" rather than "chinese", capitalizing the C as a way of signifying importance and respect in the same way you might say The White House or Stanford, rather than stanford. To many, "chinese" simply implies you are too lazy to capitalize the "C". (which is, conversely, why there is an implied value and respect associated with capitalizing) I hope that makes sense, it is a somewhat amorphous subject and as such difficult to articulate.

mahmud 16y ago
You're absolutely right. I just wasn't sure how else to distinguish between Chinese (citizens of the PRC), and diaspora Chinese (people of Chinese origin that are not PRC citizens) Ok, added qualifiers.
- kulpreet 16y ago
  Actually, I think I'm wrong because I wrote 中国人, which literally implies a person from PRC. I'm still learning Chinese in school and I didn't know how to say "people of Chinese origin" haha
  - brianmwang 16y ago
    This may betray my own ignorance, but I believe 中国人 is perfectly fine for describing oneself even if you are not from the Mainland, such as in my case. I've hung around plenty of 1st generation Chinese folk from Taiwan and conversation seems to still use 中国人 as a general term, not as something specific only to Mainlanders. I suppose if you really wanted, you could use the term "Han Chinese", but that is in fact more ethnically specific than 中国人.