Most people going to Singapore almost expect to be greeted in the traditional Chinese "Ni Hao?" the moment they arrive. However this is not the case. Singapore, where 78% of the population descends from Ethnic Chinese ancestors is fast forgetting its roots and is succumbing to western influence. More and more citizens are taking up English instead of Chinese as it offers a better chance financially. Also the youth are not inclined to learn the much harder mandarin Chinese as it requires a lot of effort and also uses a lot of idioms for expression. Contrast this with the 26 letters of English and the much simpler and easy going way of expression and it becomes clear why the youth have opted for the latter.
However the consequences of such a development are disastrous for the survival of the traditional Chinese dialects. Along with the disappearance of Mandarin comes the extinction of Taoism, the backbone of Traditional Chinese culture; English has definitely taken the place of Chinese here grossly threatening the self-identity of the Chinese. A lot of professional people in Singapore have attributed their success to their understanding of the English language; it is only obvious that the ambitious youth who wants to follow in their footsteps.
Since the 1980's the Singaporean Government has carried out the Speak Mandarin Campaign by which they have tried to encourage the usage of Mandarin Chinese by selling books, and recently CD-ROM's. The latest effort is directed towards making the language more trendy and acceptable by the youth.
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