Several prominent factors to the intergenerational language shift from Chiu Chownese to Cantonese are observed in the Wu family. They are the decreasing degree of intergenerational transmission of Chiu Chownese, looser ties with the Chiu Chow community of the family and the economic and cultural dominance of Cantonese in Hong Kong.
Decline in the degree of intergenerational transmission
There are several prominent contributory factors to the intergenerational language shift. One of them is the decrease in the degree of intergenerational transmission. Such transmission is closely related to parents’ attitude towards Chiu Chownese. Between the first two generations, Grandpa Wu and Grandma Wu teach and communicate with Papa Wu in Chiu Chownese only. And that is why Papa Wu becomes a native speaker of Chiu Chownese. However, Papa Wu and Mama Wu mainly use Cantonese to talk with their children who have lived in Hong Kong from birth. Rather than explicitly teaching their children Chiu Chownese, they tend to translate Chiu Chownese terms when there is miscommunication between the children and their grandparents. Therefore, the partial transmission of Chiu Chownese from the second generation to their children can contribute to the shift from Chiu Chownese to Cantonese in the family.
Looser ties with the Chiu Chow community
Besides, the shift to Cantonese is in line with the family’s looser ties with the Chiu Chow community. The connection with the Chiu Chow community can be observed from the background, participation in activities related to the Chiu Chow community and the frequency of travelling back to Chiu Chow.
The Oldest Generation
Grandpa Wu and Grandma Wu lived in Chiu Chow until their fifties and moved to Hong Kong with Papa Wu. Grandpa Wu helps in the restaurant while grandma Wu spends most of the time at home. Grandpa Wu was often engaged in activities held by some Chiu Chow community organizations before to expand the social circle and promote the family business.
The Second and Youngest Generations
Papa Wu, on the other hand, spent his whole childhood and adolescence in Chiu Chow and moved to Hong Kong with his parents and Mama Wu. Papa Wu himself is very busy running the family business and can hardly spend time joining activities related to the Chiu Chow community. The only activity that he has attended is Hungry Ghost Festival in where he watches Chinese opera performances. Moreover, all the children in the family were born and raised in Hong Kong. They go to Hungry Ghost Festival only when they have to accompany their grandparents. And the entire family rarely goes back to Chiu Chow now. The last time they went back to their hometown has already been ten years ago.
Economic and cultural dominance of Cantonese in Hong Kong
According to Papa Wu, about ⅓ of the customers are locals who speak Cantonese in Hong Kong. Cantonese, along with English and Mandarin, are the major languages used in Hong Kong. Chiu Chownese is deemed a language minority in Hong Kong. In order to cater for the majority of the customers, they adapt to the Cantonese-speaking environment in Hong Kong.
