Fuzhou Dialect

Fuzhou dialect (福州話, Foochow Romanized: Hók-ciŭ-uâ), also known as Foochow dialect, Hoochewese, Fuzhounese, or Fuzhouhua, is considered the standard dialect of Min Dong, which is a branch of Min Chinese mainly spoken in the eastern part of Fujian Province. Native speakers also call it Bàng-uâ (平話), meaning the language spoken in everyday life. In Singapore and Malaysia, the language is known as Hokchiu in Hokkien, Hujiu which is the Min Dong pronunciation of Fuzhou.

Although it is traditionally called a 'dialect', Fuzhou can be variously considered a dialect or a language depending on whether one bases the definition on social or linguistic criteria. By linguistic criteria, the Fuzhou dialect is technically a separate language, as it is not mutually intelligible with other Min languages—let alone other Sinitic (Chinese) languages.

Centered in Fuzhou City, the Fuzhou dialect covers eleven cities and counties: Fuzhou (福州), Pingnan (屏南), Gutian (古田), Luoyuan (羅源), Minqing (閩清), Lianjiang (連江, Matsu included), Minhou (閩侯), Changle (長樂), Yongtai (永泰), Fuqing (福清) and Pingtan (平潭). Fuzhou dialect is also the second local language in northern and middle Fujian cities and counties, like Nanping (南平), Shaowu (邵武), Shunchang (順昌), Sanming (三明) and Youxi (尤溪).

Fuzhou dialect is also widely spoken in some regions abroad, especially in Southeastern Asian countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. The city of Sibu in Malaysia is called "New Fuzhou" due to the influx of immigrants there in the early 1900s. Similarly, the language has spread to the USA, the UK, Australia and Japan as a result of immigration in recent decades.