Haklau Min


Haklau, or Hai Lok Hong, is a variety of Southern Min spoken in Shanwei, Guangdong province, China. While it is related to Teochew and Hokkien, its exact classification in relation to them is disputed.

Etymology

The word Haklau is the Southern Min pronunciation of Hoklo, originally a Hakka exonym for the Southern Min speakers, including Hoklo and Teochew people. Although originally it was perceived as a derogatory term, the Southern Min speakers in Shanwei self-identify as Haklau and distinguish themselves from Teochew people and Hokkien people. Overseas Hai Lok Hong people still do not like this appellation.
Historically, the Hai Lok Hong region was not a part of Teochew prefecture, but was included in the primarily Hakka-speaking Huizhou prefecture. Modern Huizhou city also has a Haklau-speaking minority.
The word Hai Lok Hong is a portmanteau of Hai Hong and Lok Hong, where it is mainly spoken. The character 陸 has multiple pronunciations in Southern Min: the reading le̍k is vernacular, it is common in Teochew, but rarely used in Hokkien and Haklau itself; the reading lio̍k or lo̍k is literary and commonly used in Hokkien and Haklau, but not Teochew, yet its Teochew rendering is the source of English Hai Lok Hong.

Classification

The Language Atlas of China classifies Hai Lok Hong as part of Teochew. Other classifications pinpoint the phonological features of Hai Lok Hong that are not found in Teochew, but instead are typical for Chiangchew Hokkien. These features include:
  • the final /-i/ in characters like 魚 hî 'fish', 語 gí 'language', and the final /-u/ in 自 chū 'self', 事 sū 'matter', as in Chiangchew Hokkien. Northern Teochew has /-ɯ/ in these words, while Southern Teochew has them with /-u/.
  • the final /-uĩ/ in words like 門 mûi 'door; gate', 光 kuiⁿ 'light'. Teochew has them with /-ɯŋ/ or /-uŋ/.
  • the finals /-e/, /-eʔ/ and /-ei/, as in rural southern dialects of Hokkien, corresponding to Teochew /-o/, /-oiʔ/ and /-oi/. Conservative Northern Hokkien dialects have these words with /-ə/, /-əeʔ/, and /-əe/ respectively.
  • the preservation of the codas /-n/ and /-t/, which are merged with /-ŋ/ and /-k/ in most dialects of Teochew.
Still, Hai Lok Hong also has features typical for Teochew, but not Hokkien, such as:
  • the preservation of 8 tones, pronounced similarly to Northern Teochew. Most dialects of Hokkien only have 7 citation tones.
  • the final /-uaŋ/ in 況 khuàng 'situation', 亡 buâng 'to perish', which has merged with /-oŋ/ in Hokkien.
  • less extensive denasalization: Hai Lok Hong and Teochew differentiate between 逆 nge̍k 'to go against' and 玉 ge̍k 'jade', or 宜 ngî 'suitable' and 疑 gî 'doubt', while in Hokkien, these pairs are merged.
Lexically, Hai Lok Hong also shares some traits with Teochew: 個 kâi '', 愛 àiⁿ 'to want', 睇 théi 'to see' — compare Hokkien 兮 --ê, 卜 beh and 看 khòaⁿ.