Historical Inheritance and Evolutionary Patterns of Hakka Dialect Among Mauritian Chinese

Xing Xin and Guo An

Chinese Journal of Language Policy and Planning ›› 2025, Vol. 10 ›› Issue (2) : 36-44.

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Chinese Journal of Language Policy and Planning ›› 2025, Vol. 10 ›› Issue (2) : 36-44. DOI: 10.19689/j.cnki.cn10-1361/h.20250204

Historical Inheritance and Evolutionary Patterns of Hakka Dialect Among Mauritian Chinese

  • Xing Xin and Guo An
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Abstract

The Chinese community in Mauritius predominantly consists of Hakka people, with the Hakka dialect being their ancestral language. Due to the absence of a single indigenous ethnic group and dominant language, Mauritius has developed a diverse sociolinguistic structure characterized by multiple immigrant communities and concurrent multilingualism. This has led to unique types of ancestral language inheritance among the Chinese community. Based on empirical data we collected and random interviews, we have identified the following three types of evolutionary continua of Hakka dialect inheritance in Mauritius. (1) Intergenerational Continuum Evolution of the Hakka Dialect. This is categorized into seven levels based on generational fluency, with a current family inheritance of the Hakka dialect showing a declining trend. (2) Multilingual Acquisition Continuum Evolution. This is classified into monolingual, bilingual, and multilingual continua based on the number of languages acquired. Within this continuum, bilingual and multilingual individuals exhibit differences in language choice. (3) Continuum Evolution of Hakka Dialect Inheritance and Mandarin Development. This includes three evolutionary processes: ancestral language (Hakka), dual Chinese languages (Hakka + Mandarin), and non-ancestral language (Mandarin). From these findings, we summarize the unique inheritance type of the Hakka dialect in Mauritius as a multilingual fusion type. We also explore four influencing factors — family, school education, culture, and communication — that contribute to the formation of this inheritance type.

Key words

Mauritian Chinese / Hakka dialect / Chinese language inheritance / continuum evolution / inheritance pattern

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Xing Xin and Guo An. Historical Inheritance and Evolutionary Patterns of Hakka Dialect Among Mauritian Chinese[J]. Chinese Journal of Language Policy and Planning. 2025, 10(2): 36-44 https://doi.org/10.19689/j.cnki.cn10-1361/h.20250204

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