Why You Should Learn Chinese and Why So Many Expats Can Speak Chinese

The number of English speakers, or should I say expatriates, living in in China or Taiwan who can communicate in Chinese is quite high. The few that don't speak the language almost all express regret at not being able to do so.

It is a fact that native English speakers are a bit spoilt because English is arguably the number one international language. I have never been to any international airport or 5 star hotel where you couldn't communicate in English. That is why a lot of native English speakers fall into the trap of not being bothered to learn a foreign language while living abroad for an extended period of time.

Spain comes to mind as a very good example of a country with a lot of expatriates, but very few who can speak Spanish well. That is because it is not really necessary to the average expat to learn the language, especially in the popular coastal areas.

China and Taiwan however are a whole different ballgame. Firstly, you will find it very hard to find a taxi driver who can speak English. Yes, even at the airport or in major cities. Secondly, although all Chinese get English lessons in high school, there are very few that master the English language apart from "How are you?" and "I am fine, thank you."

So it is obviously very beneficial to a foreigner living in one of these countries to learn Chinese. Imagine not being able to buy a train or bus ticket, order a taxi and so on. This alone would already be a big motivation to learn the language.

It also explains why so many foreigners can at least hold a basic conversation in the local language as opposed to native English speakers living in most other countries. Another reason is that a fair amount of these foreigners are actually Chinese language students who specifically came to those countries to study at a Chinese language institute or university.

The advantage of living in a country where English is hardly understood or spoken, is that you will be forced to start speaking the local language as soon as possible. This gives you the opportunity to move on from the basic to the intermediate level at a fast pace. It does not mean you will achieve fluency in Chinese in a short time, but it will help you to get by on a conversational level. Communication is after all what learning a foreign language is all about.

If you are planning to go to any of these countries, either as a tourist, student or for employment, it would not hurt to learn some basic vocabulary and sentence patterns. Have a look at http://chineselearningsoftware.net for some great Chinese learning software.