Op-Ed: From Chorus to Solo — Who is Still Enjoying The Show?

Head to Part 1 of this Op-Ed to understand the background of the Speak Mandarin Campaign (SMC) . In Part 2, we dive into the unintended loss of heritage due to SMC and how we can amend the existing policies to encourage deeper connection with one's cultural roots through Chinese dialects. We wonder, will there be a time where younger generations will be able to converse in their own dialects, or will they be forgotten in history?

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article are the writer’s own and are not representative of MAJU’s views. While we make every effort to ensure that the information shared is accurate, we welcome any comments, suggestions, or corrections of errors.

Acknowledgments: The authors would like to thank Kautsar Aryana (Osa) for his unwavering support and dedication to this project even though he was unable to take part as a writer.

Credit to Unsplash (Unsplash: Jiachen Lin) https://unsplash.com/photos/a-city-street-filled-with-lots-of-traffic-next-to-tall-buildings-g2DscArYu6I

Introduction

“Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going.” To us, this quote by Rita Mae Brown speaks to how Chinese dialects in Singaporean society have huge cultural and historical significance. Yet, its impending erasure from society as a result of the Speak Mandarin Campaign (SMC) signals a gradual disconnect from our cultural roots. The SMC, launched in 1979, was one of the major driving forces behind the decline of Chinese dialects in Singapore. In many ways, the aim of the campaign to create a Mandarin-speaking environment conducive to the successful implementation of the bilingual education programme has backfired. Rather than strengthening linguistic unity within the Chinese community by encouraging the use of Chinese as a common language, it has contributed to the marginalisation of dialects while paving the way for English to emerge as the common language. At the opening of the SMC, Singapore’s first Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, warned that “if we continue to use dialects, then English will tend to become the common language between Chinese of different dialect groups.” Fast forward to the present day: English has indeed become our dominant working language. At the same time, decades of prioritising Mandarin through SMC have resulted in dialects being sidelined and largely lost.

Due to the Speak Mandarin Campaign’s aggressive promotion of Mandarin and denigration of dialects, dialects were gradually stigmatised as non-standard and impractical (for more details on SMC itself, go to Part 1 of the SMC Op-Ed!), subsequently pushed out of everyday use. In our opinion, dialects are cultural markers that should not be judged by their practicality or economic value. Their significance lies in their role as vessels of heritage and identity, forming a uniquely Singaporean mode of cultural communication in its ability for various dialects to co-exist. To measure their worth solely by practicality undermines their intrinsic cultural importance. Hence, we should rebuild our sense of heritage by creating an environment where dialect can thrive. 

SMC Has Outlived Its Purpose

The effects of dialect marginalisation are evident today. Many elderly Singaporeans who speak dialects fluently no longer actively pass their dialects down to the younger generation, having lost the motivation to do so in a society that no longer values these languages. For instance, although both our grandparents are fluent in their respective dialect, they consciously speak Mandarin when communicating with us, as it is the common language both parties are expected to be fluent in. 

The prolonged implementation of the SMC, coupled with the bilingual education policy, launched in the 1960s, has pushed dialects aside in favour of Mandarin and English, reinforcing the perception that dialects are inferior.  Since bilingual policies focus heavily on English and Mandarin as examinable subjects, many families have placed an emphasis on these languages in order to help their children adapt more smoothly to the school system. This shift is reflected in national statistics: English has become the most frequently spoken language at home for 47.6 per cent of ethnic Chinese residents, while Mandarin is the first choice for 40.2 per cent of them according to the 2020 population census. 

This reflects how dialects are no longer seen as a preferred means of communication even within families. By the 1990s, bilingual education in Singapore had become well-planned, stable, and largely successful. It's a pity that during a period where bilingualism seemed to have stabilised, the SMC continued to prioritise Mandarin at the expense of dialects, cementing the marginalisation of dialects. While a reintroduction of dialects at the time could have been risky, the SMC could have loosened its grip on dialect restrictions and evolved into a campaign that promoted multilingualism within the Chinese community. Consequently, dialects have gradually disappeared from households, making their decline almost inevitable.

With little institutional support and decreasing household usage, dialects are left with few spaces to survive. When a language is no longer taught, spoken, or valued, it cannot be sustained through sentiment alone. Without deliberate intervention and renewed recognition, dialects will continue to fade into obscurity.

Generational Disconnect — An Unintended Consequence of SMC

Ironically, the Speak Mandarin Campaign, which aimed to unify the Chinese population through a common language, may have contributed to greater intergenerational disconnection. While the uptake of Mandarin facilitates communication horizontally within the same generation, the decline of Chinese dialects has weakened vertical communication between younger Singaporeans and older generations, for whom dialects were once the primary form of expression. This was observed as an “intergenerational language loss” that inadvertently cuts off meaningful lines of communication between the younger and older generation of Singaporeans. This loss is even felt by the younger generation, as written by Hana Chen in Today Online, who struggles to communicate with her grandmother due to her inability to speak and understand dialect. 

Consequently, social isolation among senior citizens may become exacerbated as less people are able to understand them and the nuances of their dialect, without words being lost in translation. As such, the revitalisation of dialects is crucial to facilitate communication with the older generation, connect with them, and learn their stories. Our inability to do so can cause the younger generation to feel culturally isolated as they become further removed from their heritage languages. Their inability to speak and understand dialect prevents intergenerational understanding and is the first step to completely losing connection with their cultural roots. 

Turning Up the Volume on Dialects

More needs to be done in order for our dialects not to be lost completely. We can leverage how people learn bits of languages from television series and movies, tapping on the entertainment industry to help people learn dialects. For example, my (Anthea’s) sister learnt most of her Cantonese through watching shows on Television Broadcast Limited (TVB), a Hong Kong broadcasting service that airs Cantonese dramas. Although she might currently be unable to speak fluent sentences in Cantonese, she can understand the bulk of conversations. Indeed, entertainment is one of the most effective ways to enhance fluency in the language. 

We believe that dialect entertainment platforms should be more widely accessible to the general public. This can be done by lifting the existing restrictions on Free-To-Air (FTA) TV Programme code and FTA Radio programme code which state that all Chinese programmes except operas or other programmes specifically must be in Mandarin. Currently, FTA TV and radio remains limited to support the prevailing language policy of Mandarin as one of the four official languages. Dialect content is allowed in limited designated slots, but there are no plans to expand dialect use on mainstream channels. 

Furthermore, to promote the use of dialects, particularly by the younger generation, Mediacorp can use more dialects in their Mandarin television programmes. This makes dialects more commonplace and serves as the first step to de-stigmatise dialects as a substandard language. Importantly, through channels like the social media platforms of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI), youth can be directly engaged and consulted. Youth feedback allows  television programmes to be catered to the younger audience’s interests, while simultaneously generating traction online. 

Mediacorp can also partner with young, budding scriptwriters to produce films which intentionally include dialect usage.  Having the target audience as part of the production process can allow such films to be more relatable to the young as young creators may explore themes that their peers are interested in. An example of a scriptwriter would be Andre Chong, 25, who shot a short film in 2022 titled Trilingual Education Programme which was mostly in dialect. This shows that there are young people out there who care about the loss of dialect, and attempt to recoup that loss through production and direction. 

As many youth begin to turn to streaming services for their daily entertainment needs, Mediacorp can begin to put up more of these dialect programmes onto platforms like Netflix, as they did with shows like the Little Nyonya and Emerald Hill, the latter peaking at number one on Netflix in Singapore at the time of its release. More recently, the Singaporean movie A Good Child was released on Netflix and reached number three in films in Singapore. The good reception of such Singaporean productions shows how there is still a demand for such shows, especially those on streaming services that most people have. By tapping on the audiences of such services, these dialect programmes can reach more youth. 

Conclusion

Ultimately, the Speak Mandarin Campaign seems to suffer from success. Its overwhelming success in stigmatising dialects and encouraging Mandarin to unite the ethnic Chinese with one common language has instead distanced us from our roots. There is still hope to keep our dialects alive if the younger generation shows a genuine interest in preserving our heritage language. However, without government support in lifting FTA restrictions and taking the first step towards de-stigmatising dialects, bottom-up initiatives will not survive. The government must let go of its constant need for pragmatism and come to terms with the fact that the preservation of culture and heritage cannot be measured in terms of practicality. 

---

About the Authors: Natasha Chiok is a freshly graduated A Level student who participated in the MAJU Modular Experience, fuelling her interest in examining Singaporean policies. As someone who grew up with her grandparents and parents speaking Hokkien, and never being able to fully converse with them in their dialects, she has always felt a cultural disconnect in her identity as a Singaporean Chinese. This inspired her to write this piece and reflect on how Singapore’s dialects should be better preserved. 

Anthea Lim is a recent A-Level graduate who enjoys watching all kinds of Chinese dramas and has her phone set to Chinese—a detail that often surprises people. Though she is Hokkien by heritage, her family primarily speaks Cantonese. Her hope to one day converse fluently in Cantonese and see dialects remain part of everyday life in Singapore has shaped the perspective of this Op-Ed.