Wenzhounese
/ˌwɛn.dʒoʊˈniːz/noun
Relating to Wenzhou, China, its people, or the variety of Wu Chinese spoken there.
Did you know?Wenzhounese belongs to the Wu Chinese group and is renowned for being so divergent from Standard Mandarin that it has sometimes been used for secure local communication.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Chinese
Chinese
溫州
““Warm Prefecture”; the name of the city and historical administrative region in southeastern China”
Middle Chinese
Middle Chinese
溫州
“The historical Chinese place-name later romanized as Wenzhou”
19th–20th Century
English
Wenzhou
“English romanization of the Chinese city name”
Modern English
English
-ese
“A suffix meaning “of or relating to,” ultimately connected with Latin -ensis through Romance forms”
20th Century–Present
English
Wenzhounese
“A demonym and linguistic label for people, culture, or speech associated with Wenzhou”
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