A Grammar of Mandarin

“Jeroen Wiedenhof’s grammar offers a radically fresh look at how Mandarin is actually spoken, revealing on every page aspects of the spoken language which other descriptions have overlooked. Richly illustrated with examples drawn from real-life conversation and texts, the grammar is linguistically informed but uses a minimum of terminology, making its insights widely accessible to language learners.”

“This is an important work that linguists have long been waiting for. Wiedenhof's erudite yet accessible grammar avoids presenting Mandarin Chinese from a Western point of view, thus challenging theorists and providing ample food for thought to all readers.”

“Lucid and comprehensive, Wiedenhof's grammar is a significant contribution to Chinese linguistics. It explains and illustrates the structures of Mandarin faithfully and elegantly. An indispensable book for students and teachers of the Chinese language.”

“This book is a major achievement. The text is well organized, elegant, and exact. A Grammar of Mandarin is worthy to serve as a vade mecum for anyone who is seriously interested in Chinese language and writing.”

“Jeroen Wiedenhofs Grammatik ist ein umfassendes wissenschaftliches Werk für alle Linguisten, die sich grundlegendes Wissen über die sprachlichen Strukturen des modernen Hochchinesisch ohne eine intensive Sprachausbildung aneignen wollen. Aber auch für den kompetenten Sinologen oder Sprachlehrenden findet sich hier noch eine erstaunliche Fülle von Aspekten der Sprache jenseits ausgetretener Sprachlehrpfade, wie sie selten so umfangreich und doch lesbar in einem Werk anzutreffen ist. Und auch interessierten Sprachlernenden is diese umfangreiche Grammatik als begleitende Lektüre zum fortgeschrittenen Sprachstudium der gesprochenen chinesischen Hochsprache sehr zu empfehlen.”

“Le sobre titre du livre de Jeroen Wiedenhof ‘Une grammaire du mandarin’ ne laisse pas deviner son originalité profonde. Voilà pour la première fois sous forme d’un ouvrage une contribution à la langue chinoise qui se fonde pour l’essentiel sur un corpus de langue parlée contemporaine et dont le plan est loin d’être classique. [...] Pédagogique, contemporaine, clairement présentée et illustrée, cette grammaire ne fait l’impasse ni sur la diachronie ni sur la diversité géographique des langues sinitiques.”

“ A Grammar of Mandarin is certain to prove to be a classic in its field and moreover become indispensable for pinpointing the characteristics of Beijing Mandarin, appropriately in its vernacular form, as a reflection of its use in the early 21st century.”

“An authoritative and thought-provoking contribution to the scholarship of Mandarin in English that is most welcome in the field and sure to have long-lasting impact [...] Wiedenhof has produced a volume that admirably succeeds within his rather wide-reaching selection of parameters: a synchronic description of Mandarin grounded in an extensive corpus of oral data that is of both theoretical interest and pedagogical use.”