As a Chinese saying goes, "Ten miles different accents, a hundred miles different customs." In China, the various dialects across regions serve as important carriers of rich and diverse local cultures. Tobias, a Belgian who has lived in Shanghai for many years, has not only mastered Mandarin but is also fluent in Shanghainese and can speak a few phrases in other regional dialects.
Good… but how?
Tobias jokingly noted that this is because he has a "foundation"—his home country, Belgium, situated at the crossroads of France, Germany, and the Netherlands, has three official languages: French, German, and Dutch. Among these, the northern Wallonia region is the German-speaking area, the southern Flemish region is the Dutch-speaking area, while a small part of the east belongs to the German-speaking area. Our host Tobias was born in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, which is a "bilingual region" where both Dutch and French are official languages.
In this episode of the series "China-Belgium Connection," let's explore Belgium's multilingual culture together!
(Host: Tobias; Cameraperson/video editor: Bernhard; Editor: Kelly Yang; English Editor: Rachel Liu, Darius, Felicia Li; Executive Producer: Tracy)
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