Which language family includes Mandarin Chinese and Cantonese?

Which language family includes Mandarin Chinese and Cantonese?

• A. Sino-Tibetan
• B. Afro-Asiatic
• C. Indo-European
• D. Austronesian

Answer: (A)

Languages are grouped into families that reflect a common historical ancestor. Mandarin Chinese and Cantonese are both part of the Sinitic branch, which sits within the Sino-Tibetan language family. That means they share a deeper linguistic origin with other related languages in the same family, not with languages from Afro-Asiatic, Indo-European, or Austronesian groups. Afro-Asiatic includes languages like Arabic and Hebrew; Indo-European covers many European and South Asian languages; Austronesian spans languages across the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions. So the family that encompasses Mandarin and Cantonese is Sino-Tibetan.

Languages are grouped into families that reflect a common historical ancestor. Mandarin Chinese and Cantonese are both part of the Sinitic branch, which sits within the Sino-Tibetan language family. That means they share a deeper linguistic origin with other related languages in the same family, not with languages from Afro-Asiatic, Indo-European, or Austronesian groups. Afro-Asiatic includes languages like Arabic and Hebrew; Indo-European covers many European and South Asian languages; Austronesian spans languages across the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions. So the family that encompasses Mandarin and Cantonese is Sino-Tibetan.