The Possessive Pronoun
To indicate alienable possession, 的 (de) is appended to the pronoun. For inalienable possession, such as family and entities very close to the owner, this is omitted, e.g. 我妈/我媽 (wǒ mā). For older generations, 令 (ling) is the equivalent modern form 您的 (ninde), as in 令尊 (lingzun) "Your father." In literary style, 其 (qí) is sometimes used for "his" or "her"; e.g., 其父 means "his father" or "her father".
In regards to dialectals, in Taiwanese Minnan the character for "your" is 恁 (pinyin: rèn; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lín); although this would be pronounced the same as the personal pronoun 汝 lín, it is represented by a different character when used as the equivalent of 你的 in Standard Chinese.
Read more about this topic: Chinese Pronouns
Famous quotes containing the words possessive and/or pronoun:
“The narcissistic, the domineering, the possessive woman can succeed in being a “loving” mother as long as the child is small. Only the really loving woman, the woman who is happier in giving than in taking, who is firmly rooted in her own existence, can be a loving mother when the child is in the process of separation.”
—Erich Fromm (20th century)
“Would mankind be but contented without the continual use of that little but significant pronoun “mine” or “my own,” with what luxurious delight might they revel in the property of others!... But if envy makes me sicken at the sight of everything that is excellent out of my own possession, then will the sweetest food be sharp as vinegar, and every beauty will in my depraved eyes appear as deformity.”
—Sarah Fielding (1710–1768)