(10.9.2014) Professor Lekun Chen from the National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) Department of Taiwanese Literature came to discuss the origins of the Taiwanese language and the Austronesian Aboriginal languages here in Taiwan. The students learned about the different accents in Taiwanese and where they came from. They also learned about the growth and change in Taiwanese over time and how it remains quite different from the Minnan dialect still in use in China. The students also heard about how the languages spoken throughout the Asian Pacific, from the Philippines all the way to Easter Island, Hawaii, and New Zealand, are all Austronesian languages and most likely originated in Taiwan. The students were amazed by the language diversity we have here in Taiwan |