To gain a foothold

2018/08/07 04:12:31 網誌分類: 生活

07 Aug

        　　Foreign friends often grill me about whether Mandarin will one day replace Cantonese in Hong Kong. It’s anyone’s guess if Cantonese will one day play second fiddle to Mandarin. But what’s for sure is that Mandarin has already gained a foothold in Hong Kong. The number of people speaking Mandarin here will grow as we become entrenched as part of the Greater Bay Area. Many mainlanders will move their companies and staff to Hong Kong as the Greater Bay Area grows. This means Mandarin will become even more common. Hong Kong people will have to speak Mandarin because mainlanders find it hard to learn Cantonese.

        　　The word “grill” has several meanings. As a verb it means to cook food on a metal frame that has fire or coal underneath. Hamburgers are often grilled instead of fried. As a noun it means the frame and the fire that is used to grill food. But to grill someone means to ask that person a lot of difficult questions. Reporters often grill government officials. If something is “anyone’s guess”, it means no one really knows for sure the answer. It’s anyone’s guess whether the US or China will win the trade war. To play second fiddle means to be less important. To “gain a foothold” means to be in a strong position from which further progress can be made.

        　　China has already gained a foothold to become the world’s biggest economy. To become “entrenched” used this way means to become well-established. Almost 4 million mainland tourists come here every month. That’s more than half our population. Family reunion allows 150 mainlanders to come here every day. Mainland students who graduate here can stay if they find a job. Many choose to live here. Over 200,000 mainland babies born here before 2013 have the right to live here. Leung Chun-ying ended that policy when he became chief executive. The tourists, the 150 mainlanders who come here daily for family reunion, the mainland students who choose to live here, and 200,000 babies born here before the 2013 ban all speak Mandarin. That’s why I think Cantonese will slowly die in Hong Kong.　

        　　我的外國朋友不時拷問（grill）我，到底在香港普通話會否有一天取代廣東話？誰也說不準（anyone’s guess），會否有一天普通話當道，廣東話只能居次要的地位（play second fiddle）？但可以肯定的是，普通話在香港已有立足之地（gained a foothold），隨着我們確立（entrenched）為大灣區的一部份，此地操普通話的人將會增加。當大灣區發展起來，許多內地人都會將他們的公司和員工遷移至香港。這意味着，普通話將會變得愈來愈普及。香港人將要說普通話，因為內地人對於學廣東話深感困難。

        　　Grill這個字有幾個意思，作為動詞它是指在金屬架上以火或炭烤食物。漢堡包通常就是烤製（grilled）而不是炸的；作為名詞它是指用來烤（grill）食物的燒烤架。然而，to grill someone意思是盤問或拷問某人，記者就不時盤問（grill）政府官員。若某事是 anyone’s guess，即是指誰也說不準，沒有人知道答案。誰也說不準（anyone’s guess）到底是美國抑或中國能在這場貿易戰中勝出。To play second fiddle即處於次要地位，擔當配角或陪襯。To “gain a foothold”即站穩陣腳，可望有進一步的發展。

        　　中國已經站穩陣腳（gained a foothold），成為世界最大的經濟體。To become “entrenched”在這裏是指已經成形和確立了。每月差不多有四百萬名內地遊客到此旅遊，多於我們總人口的一半。每天有一百五十名內地人士獲准來港家庭團聚，二○一三年前在此出生的二十萬名內地嬰兒，也有權在此地居住。梁振英成為特首後，終止了該項政策。旅客、每天來港家庭團聚的一百五十名內地人、選擇移居此地的內地學生，以及二○一三年禁令前在此出生的二十萬名嬰兒，全都說普通話。因此，我認為廣東話在香港將會逐漸消亡。中譯：七刻

        中譯:七刻

        Michael Chugani 褚簡寧

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