Useful Phrases in the Shanghai Dialect — Reading Companion

Occupational Scenarios as Linguistic Frames

The phrasebook is organized not by grammatical topic but by the daily roles of a colonial household: the cook, houseboy, amah, tailor (gentlemen’s and ladies’), washerman, mafoo (groom), and Chinese teacher. Each section supplies ready-made sentences for typical interactions. For instance, the “Cook” section likely includes phrases for ordering food, while “The Ladies’ Tailor” covers measurements and fabric choices. This arrangement assumes a social hierarchy where the foreign speaker gives instructions and the Chinese servant responds. The “Purchasing” section, however, shows a more equal exchange: the buyer asks “What is the price of this?” and “Can you make it cheaper?”—phrases that require negotiation, not just commands.

Romanization and the Problem of Tone

McIntosh uses a romanization system borrowed from Rev. J. A. Silsby, designed for the Shanghai dialect. The system marks aspiration (e.g., tshih for “seven” vs. dz for “self”) but does not indicate tones. In the introduction, McIntosh notes that “to aspirate is important,” yet the book provides no tone marks. This omission would make it difficult for a learner to produce correct tones, though the phrases might still be understood in context. The romanization also reflects local pronunciation: nyung-chi for “silver ware” and hyang-loo for “incense burner.” The index-vocabulary lists words with their phrase-specific meanings, a pragmatic compromise for a handbook not intended for deep linguistic study.

Cultural Assumptions Embedded in Phrases

The phrasebook reveals the cultural and economic context of early 20th-century Shanghai. In “Purchasing,” the buyer asks about “Mexican dollars,” “Hongkong dollars,” “Japanese yen,” and “American dollars,” reflecting the multiple currencies in circulation. The phrase “Can you use these dollars?” suggests that not all foreign coins were accepted. The “Chinese Teacher” section includes requests to learn “Mandarin” or “Shanghai dialect,” showing that the foreigner could choose which variety to study. The teacher is addressed as sien-sang (先生) and paid monthly—eight dollars for daily one-hour lessons. The book also includes phrases for hiring servants, buying curios, and even dealing with the police, framing language as a tool for control and commerce.

McIntosh’s phrasebook is best used as a supplement to more systematic works, such as those by Hawks Pott or Yates, which he recommends in the introduction. Readers should be aware that the romanization lacks tone marks and that the index gives contextual rather than primary meanings. The book’s value lies in its snapshot of Shanghai’s linguistic landscape in 1908—a city where English, Chinese, and multiple foreign currencies coexisted in daily transactions.

I remember my own copy of the old 1908 Shanghai phrasebook—its pages, like summer dust, taught me that memorizing a merchant’s idiom is a kind of patience, not grammar. That feeling returns whenever I open English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions — Story, Setting & Ideas; across a century, both whisper that precision lives in chosen words, not rigid rules. A quiet kinship, indeed.