Learn to speak and understand Cantonese through dialogs that teach you basic language skills for communicating with Cantonese speakers in a variety of cultural contexts.
- 20 lessons with 29 native-speaker videos
- Romanization and Chinese-character transcriptions
- 11,400 word & sentence audio recordings
- Custom on-screen Cantonese keyboard
- Interactive exercises through Moodle
This course costs only $9.99/month (3 months minimum)
Watch video and learn about greetings, shopping, food, dining out, weather, education, literature, holiday traditions, and more. With our specially designed video player for language learning you can pause the video at any point and scroll the transcription. Read annotations about culture and grammar. Click on almost any word or sentence to hear it spoken, along with translations.
This course can be used either by independent learners or by students in a traditional or self-instructional classroom setting, and is the equivalent of the material covered in a one-year college course.
Transcriptions are written in Yale romanization — the system used by most Cantonese textbooks for English speakers — and you can also view every lesson in Chinese characters.Classroom-Tested and Peer-Reviewed
Multiple Choice, Fill in the blank, and Listening Dictation exercises are provided for each lesson. A searchable audio glossary with thousands of words and translations helps you find every occurrence of a word or part of a word in all of the lessons.
A custom on-screen keyboard is provided for Cantonese romanization.This course costs only $9.99/month (3 months minimum)
Sample Video: Cantonese Numbers 1-10
Table of Contents and Sample Lessons with Audio and Video
Try one of the sample lessons below with video, transcriptions, annotations, translations, and individual word and sentence audio recordings:
- Hái Jūnggwok Jūngsān Daaihhohkge Haauhyùhn Chāantēng (At the Zhongshan University Cafeteria in China)
- Gàatìhng Sìhngyùhn (Family Members)
- Jòu Fóng (Renting a Room)
- Hái Pàhngyáuh Ūkkéi Sihkfaahn (At a Friend’s House for Dinner)
- Hái Chāangún Sihkfaahn (Eating at a Restaurant)
- Tìnhei (Weather)
- Hái Syùdim (At the Bookstore)
- Hái Baahkfo Gūngsī (At the Department Store)
- Hái Choi Síhchèuhng (At the Food Market)
- Tóuleuhn Hohkjaahp Gaiwaahk (Discussing Study Plans)
- Gaaisiuh Pàhngyáuh (Introductions)
- Kàhmyaht tùhng lóuhsì ge mihntaam (Yesterday’s meeting with the Teacher)
- Yīfuhk (Clothing)
- Léuihhàahng (Traveling)
- Hái Ngàhnhòhng (At the Bank)
- Tái Yīsāng (Seeing the Doctor)
- Wán gùng (Finding Work)
- Hái Yàuhguhk (At the Post Office)
- KālāOK (Karaoke)
- Sunghàhng (The Airport)
About the Author
Dana Scott Bourgerie, PhD is Department Chair and Professor, Asian & Near Eastern Languages at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. He earned his Ph.D. in East Asian Languages in 1991 from The Ohio State University. He has studied as a Fulbright scholar at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and as a visiting scholar at the City University of Hong Kong. More information about him is here.Course materials © 1995–2026 Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona. Used under license.
Frequently asked questions
How much material does Beginning Cantonese cover?
Beginning Cantonese covers the equivalent of a full year of college-level Cantonese instruction — roughly 120 hours of material — delivered as structured video lessons with full transcriptions and translations.
Do I need any prior experience to take Beginning Cantonese?
No. Beginning Cantonese starts from the very beginning — the alphabet, sounds, and essential phrases — and assumes no prior knowledge of Cantonese.
How are the lessons delivered?
The course is fully online and self-paced. You learn from native-speaker videos with on-screen transcriptions and translations, then practice with interactive exercises — on any device, on your own schedule.
How much does Beginning Cantonese cost?
Access is $9.99/month with a three-month minimum, and one subscription unlocks the entire course.
Who created Beginning Cantonese?
Beginning Cantonese was originally created by the University of Arizona Critical Languages Program as part of the Critical Languages Series. It was designed by Dana Scott Bourgerie, PhD, published by Language Canvas, and used under license.