Youth redefine local heritage in 2025

Guangdong

In the vibrant, ever-evolving city of Shenzhen, Guangdong province, Yuan Xiaoting is dedicated to preserving and revitalizing the region's sonic heritage as both a promoter of the Cantonese language and a vlogger. Her journey centers around finding new ways to nurture dialect culture in a rapidly modernizing metropolis.

Yuan believes that the core of local culture in Shenzhen and throughout Guangdong lies in pragmatism and efficiency. Many expressions in the Cantonese dialect reflect this "down-to-earth, unpretentious" spirit. As a district-level "cultural promotion ambassador" for Shenzhen, she feels a strong responsibility to share this unique urban character with the wider world.

In response to concerns about the "extinction of dialects",Yuan has initiated a series of systematic projects, including the creation of a Cantonese language course, which has attracted over 30,000 students worldwide. She also pioneered an internationally oriented Cantonese course taught entirely in English.

To her surprise, she discovered that overseas variants of Cantonese, such as Malaysian Cantonese, have preserved more archaic vocabulary. This finding reinforced her belief in the importance of global dissemination to keep a language vibrant.

"Language is a living museum," she said. "Its significance lies in affirming and extending our identity. Our most authentic selves are embedded in our dialect."