Confused Person Asks Why S’poreans Should Learn Dialects Instead Of ‘Useful’ Languages Like French & German

NUSWhispers User Questions Why Singaporeans Should Learn Dialect & Not Something More ‘Useful’

With Singapore being a multicultural and multilingual country, it is not uncommon for people here to speak more than one language.

For Chinese Singaporeans, many may also speak a dialect other than Mandarin, such as Hokkien or Cantonese.

However, one NUSWhispers user is questioning whether it is necessary for them to learn their own dialect.

They feel that they should learn a “useful” language such as French or German instead.

In response, many advised the user to not overlook the benefits of knowing a dialect and keeping traditions alive.

NUSWhispers user asks why they should learn dialect

On Wednesday (26 July), an NUSWhispers user anonymously submitted a post questioning why they should learn their own dialect.

According to the post, the OP asked why they should learn Teochew when they could spend the time learning “an actual useful” language such as French or German in addition to English and Mandarin.

They highlighted how “hostile” people can supposedly get when it comes to remembering one’s roots.

In spite of that, the user confessed that they do not recall an instance where they benefitted from doing what their ancestors did.

Says traditions are not ‘fundamentally useful’ in life

They listed examples of old items like oil lamps and manual cars, asking if they should learn to use these too.

On top of that, they said that their grandfather consumed and made tea out of “random wild plants from the side of the road” when he was sick.

Apparently, the grandfather passed away without having taken “a single pill” from a doctor.

“Should I learn that?” questioned the OP.

The user thinks that people should have a system that lets them choose which aspects of their ancestors’ lives they should learn from.

“It’s funny people advocate for things that [aren’t] fundamentally helpful to the actual struggles of life, most of which are material,” they pointedly said.

Concluding their post, they implored, “Please let us advocate first making a living and then you can learn whatever obscure language or tradition if you have spare time.”

Netizens say dialects & traditions can be advantageous

In response to the post, many other Facebook users pointed out the benefits of knowing a dialect.

Some also urged the OP to not overlook the advantages that traditions can bring.

One commenter provided a simple solution — people should learn what they are interested in.

But they also supplemented their answer by saying that knowing a dialect allows someone to be part of a community and join conversations.

Some, like this commenter, pointed out that French and German aren’t exactly that useful in Singapore either.

Instead, they said that it would be more useful to learn Malay or Mandarin.

Another comment said that whether the OP chooses to get in touch with their roots is entirely up to them.

However, there is no need to belittle others who are learning their dialects.

And, of course, another obvious benefit to learning dialect is knowing when someone is scolding you, quipped this user.

Do you agree with the OP’s thoughts? Let us know in the comments.

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Featured image adapted from Timothée Gidenne on Unsplash and NUSWhispers on Facebook.