Language, phonetics, pronunciation and etymology.

[heimlaga]

How important the melody of a language is varies a lot between languages.
In Danish the melody and intonation is very important. In English a bit less so. In Swedish and Norwegian even less so. In Finnish even less.
Those who speak Vietnameese or Mandarin say melody intonation in those languages is even more important then in Danish. According to a chap who speaks Kantoneese fluently it is all intonation and melody and nothing else.

 

[guineafowl21]

How important the melody of a language is varies a lot between languages.
In Danish the melody and intonation is very important. In English a bit less so. In Swedish and Norwegian even less so. In Finnish even less.
Those who speak Vietnameese or Mandarin say melody intonation in those languages is even more important then in Danish. According to a chap who speaks Kantoneese fluently it is all intonation and melody and nothing else.

Depending on how you say it (rising, falling, steady tone), the Cantonese word “gau” can have several meanings:

Said correctly, ‘gau gau gau’ means ‘nine ***** dog’.