ABOUT 關於
Information about https://sinophonia.com: what sinophonia is, why I created this site, notes on its design, and contact information.
CONTENTS 錄
Sinophonia 華品
Definition
I define sinophonia as written or spoken materials created using one or more language or dialect of Chinese.
https://sinophonia.com is a website about a subset of sinophonia that interests me.
Context
Repeatedly clarifying what I mean by Chinese in a given context — Mandarin? All Chinese languages? Of the nation? Of the state? — tests my patience, as do efforts to mitigate this with long-winded terms such as Chinese-language X, or Chinese-speaking Y.
I arrived at the collective term sinophonia as a concise way to describe the focus of this site that limits the awkward conflation of ethnicity, language, nationality and political designation that results when a single term is shared across such distinct concepts.
Sinophone 華語圈 is an existing term that denotes individuals and populations who speak, read or write any of the various languages and dialects that originate from China.
In this vein, sinophonia refers to written or spoken materials that are produced using those same languages and dialects.
Cantonese cinema, Sichuanese theatre, and Hokkien songs all meet this definition, as do adverts, articles, books, magazines, memes, online discussions, propaganda slogans, radio and television in these or any other languages or dialects of Chinese.
Translation
I translate sinophonia into Chinese as
華 evokes multiple aspects of Chinese identity, appearing in terms such as
In some contexts 華 is used interchangeably with 漢 — sinophone
When used as a noun suffix, 品 is associated with categorical terms including
In combination 華 and 品 form the compound word
Motivation 動因
Since I first began to learn Chinese, I set upon the goal of attaining a high level of literacy. This is a subjective standard which I define in these terms:
- to be able to read the same materials as educated native speakers,
- to do so with close to the ease I experience in my mother tongue, and
- to feel something akin to what a native speaker might feel when they read them.
That last point sticks out a bit, so to elaborate: the might in "might feel" is key, since the experience of thought in an acquired language will differ to an extent to that of those who think in it as their primary language.
Arguably this can also be said of our comprehension of those we share a language with. The best we can do is to use languages as a proxy for true understanding.
And yet, it's not enough to me to understand what I read at an intellectual level. I want to feel and be stimulated by writing in this language in the same way as when I read my favourite writers in English.
The catch is that for this to happen, the writing must also be good in the first place. As others have pointed out, good writing is not often offered up to the newcomer — but it sure is out there.
For new Chinese-language speakers seeking native materials to engage with, the volume of media available can make it difficult to find works that suit their interests and taste.
This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the creative environment of the largest Chinese-speaking polity is so severely constrained. Original works that grapple with this reality often fall foul of censors, or are deterred from being created in the first place.
In the case of those whose form of self-expression is hazardous, their willingness to persist in spite of great personal risk makes their voices especially deserving of an audience.
From the outset I've sought recommendations from friends and other native speakers, and relied on their tastes and cultural clairvoyance to filter out the noise. I'm ever grateful for their patience and the many excellent discoveries made thanks to them.
Over time I've developed my own sense of how and where to seek out writing I'm interested in, which is something I tend to take for granted in my native language.
The effort to engage is worthwhile. There are a wealth of contemporary artists and thinkers who convey deep human and social insights with dignity, humour, and compassion, only a fraction of which gains due recognition.
This site is a live repository for notes on sinophonia that interests me in various forms, that I'd like to record and highlight.
Design 設計
Style
I enjoy visiting sites that are thoughtfully designed to emphasise written content, with minimal distractions. I prefer dark themes for aesthetic reasons as well as the reduction in eye strain.
Two sites in particular serve as inspiration for the design of this site.
The first is China Heritage. Aside from being an abundant source of excellent research and thought-pieces on socio-political matters relating to the Chinese-speaking world, it's also an example of tasteful design in a minimalist fashion for a site that combines English and Chinese text.
The second is Gwern.net. This personal website features long-form writing on an ecclectic range of subjects that reflect the author's broad interests in machine-learning, human learning, programming, anime, and much else besides. It demonstrates intelligent design features that dramatically enhance the experience of reading online.
Development
In addition to the above-stated reasons regarding my decision to build this site, a core motivation is to further my studies in software development.
The source code for this site is available on GitHub. Since its launch in 2022, the site has gone through several iterations from embarrassing early drafts to the current form, involving at least one major redesign between September and October 2024. Notable site updates are recorded in the changelog.
Both the code behind and the text displayed on this site will remain a work in progress, as I continue to improve the site's performance, introduce new features to enhance the UX — user experience — and refine the writing incrementally over time.
Typography
For Latin script this site makes use of Vernon Adams' Oswald for headings, and Frank Grießhammer's Source Serif Pro for body text.
Chinese characters are rendered here in their traditional
ZCOOL QingKe HuangYou is nominally a simplified
Contact 聯絡
Email me at