...the "x" in a word such as Xi'an or Xiamen or Xinjiang? Is it "sh", or more like "zsh"? Or something completely different?
Mandatory mom question: Do your kids speak Chinese?
I don't speak Chinese, but I did take some Chinese history courses from a professor who speaks Chinese, and worked for an Asian company with many Chinese customers. From my experience, it is pronounced with a "zsh" sound.
http://chinesepod.com/tools/pronunciation/section/10
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=200807051436...
My kids learn Mandarin in school, and also Japanese and Hawaiian. Public school.
They know more than I do.
ETA: I just got home from dropping them off. In Mandarin, the "Xi" is pronounced like "s" - for example one of their names is Xiang. Her name is pronounced "Sang" - not "SH-Ang" but "SANG". If the "i" is NOT following the "X" - it's pronounced "Sh".
A.,
I pick up foreign exchange students from China. Depends upon if you are speaking Cantonese or Mandarin... do you know the dialect??
No. My kids don't. We have a tutor for Spanish and French. The next is Chinese.
The "X" in Mandarin is "zsh"
I had a co-worker who was originally from China. Her name was Xiao, and the X was pronounced "Sh" - so her name was like the first syllable of the word "shower." She spoke Mandarin Chinese (she was from the mainland, not Hong Kong), if that makes a difference.
My kids are learning French, and went to a bilingual Armenian school when they were younger, so they both speak that fluently. I myself speak French. We have not embarked upon any of the Asian languages yet.
I am Chinese. I speak Chinese. My kids speak a teenie tiny bit of Chinese.
Yes, "x" is the sound "sh". When you see Chinese words that start with "sh", it is also pronounced "sh". But in Chinese, there is still a difference between the "x" and "sh" words. If you're just reading names on a roster in the U.S, "Shao" and "Xiao" would both be pronounced the same. But in Chinese, they are actually pronounced differently.
BTW: There are several different Romanization methods for Mandarin Chinese. The People's Republic of China officially uses the Pinyin Romanization method. This is the only Romanization method that uses "x" and "q". Confusing enough?
My husband is Chinese and, while he doesn't speak it much, my in-laws do. They speak Mandarin and typically pronounce an x as a "sh" sound. However, just like in the US, there are different accents depending on where you are from within China, so those who say "zsh" may be from a different part of the country as those who say "sh."
My children (ages 6 and 3) understand a decent amount of basic Chinese, since their grandparents speak to them in Chinese a good amount of the time. My older one can say a few phrases/sentences and many other words, whereas my younger one only can say a few words and a couple of phrases (all related to eating... "it's time to eat" and "I'm all done eating" are her big ones). They don't take Chinese classes or anything though and we don't speak it at home. I wish they would learn more, but am not willing to invest the time or money for Chinese school right now.
