Chinese (中文; Zhōngwén, especially when referring to written Chinese) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and many minority ethnic groups in Greater China. About 1.3 billion people (or approximately 16% of the world’s population) speak a variety of Chinese as their first language. List Of Best Chinese Language Schools In Kenya. This is a list of the best Chinese language schools in Kenya. Learning the Chinese language is the best thing that anyone can do. The language has gained popularity in Kenya and continues to open unlimited opportunities, especially for those who are in business, international relations and diplomacy.
Chinese languages form the Sinitic branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages family. The spoken varieties of Chinese are usually considered by native speakers to be dialects of a single language. However, their lack of mutual intelligibility means they are sometimes considered to be separate languages in a family. Investigation of the historical relationships among the varieties of Chinese is ongoing. Currently, most classifications posit 7 to 13 main regional groups based on phonetic developments from Middle Chinese, of which the most spoken by far is Mandarin (with about 800 million speakers, or 66%), followed by Min (75 million, e.g. Southern Min), Wu (74 million, e.g. Shanghainese), and Yue (68 million, e.g. Cantonese). These branches are unintelligible to each other, and many of their subgroups are unintelligible with the other varieties within the same branch (e.g. Southern Min). There are, however, transitional areas where varieties from different branches share enough features for some limited intelligibility, including New Xiang with Southwest Mandarin, Xuanzhou Wu with Lower Yangtze Mandarin, Jin with Central Plains Mandarin and certain divergent dialects of Hakka with Gan (though these are unintelligible with mainstream Hakka). All varieties of Chinese are tonal to at least some degree, and are largely analytic.
The earliest Chinese written records are Shang dynasty-era oracle bone inscriptions, which can be dated to 1250 BCE. The phonetic categories of Old Chinese can be reconstructed from the rhymes of ancient poetry. During the Northern and Southern dynasties period, Middle Chinese went through several sound changes and split into several varieties following prolonged geographic and political separation. Qieyun, a rime dictionary, recorded a compromise between the pronunciations of different regions. The royal courts of the Ming and early Qing dynasties operated using a koiné language (Guanhua) based on Nanjing dialect of Lower Yangtze Mandarin.
Standard Chinese (Standard Mandarin), based on the Beijing dialect of Mandarin, was adopted in the 1930s and is now an official language of both the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan), one of the four official languages of Singapore, and one of the six official languages of the United Nations. The written form, using the logograms known as Chinese characters, is shared by literate speakers of mutually unintelligible dialects. Since the 1950s, simplified Chinese characters have been promoted for use by the government of the People’s Republic of China, while Singapore officially adopted simplified characters in 1976. Traditional characters remain in use in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, and other countries with significant overseas Chinese speaking communities such as Malaysia (which although adopted simplified characters as the de facto standard in the 1980s, traditional characters still remain in widespread use).
Here is a List Of Best Chinese Language Schools In Kenya
Discovery Chinese Cultural Center LTD (肯尼亚中国文化交流中心)
Address: Koinange St, Nairobi
Phone: 0724 875317
Appointments: discoverychinese.com
Confucius Institute- Moi University
It is an institution of Chinese language and cultural teachings in Eldoret. It offers various Chinese language courses, Chinese culture and tutoring at affordable costs.
Contact: 0740 924 534.
Confucius Institute
Address: confucius institute, Kenya Drive, Nairobi
Phone: 0719 512273
The Language School in Kenya
Address: Chania Ave, Nairobi
Phone: 0703 228840
Appointments: languageschoolkenya.org
A C K Language & Orientation School
Address: Bishop Rd, Nairobi
Phone: 020 2721893
Oracle Language Centre
Oracle Language Centre provides various language classes from basic to advanced levels. It provides beginners, intermediate and advanced Chinese language courses.
Location: Fair Acres Road, Karen.
Contacts: 0736 496 025/ 0701 707 001.
Kenya Institute of Foreign Languages & Professional Studies (KIFLAPS)
Address: Kenda House, Tom Mboya St, Nairobi
Phone: 0710 462063
Products and Services: kiflaps.ac.ke
The Chinese Full Time School
Address: Along Mumbai Road, Nyeri Town, Mumbi Rd, Nairobi
SPRING INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGE CENTER
Address: Rose park apartment, Rose Ave, Nairobi
Phone: 0722 728350
Erdemann Chinese School
Erdemann Chinese School is the first Chinese international School in Kenya. It is a full-time elementary school offering various Chinese language courses and martial arts training.
Location: Laikipia Road, Kileleshwa.
Contact: 0791 839 963.
Confucius Institute- University of Nairobi
The institute is located within the University of Nairobi. It is an institution with a mission of helping people in the world to learn the Chinese language and the culture of the Chinese. Intakes are done in January, May and September.
Contact: 020 491 8017.