​Cantonese is one of the majority languages in Hong Kong. About 93.6% of the Hong Kong population was of Chinese ethnicity; Cantonese was the most commonly spoken language at home for about 89.5% of the population aged 5 and over (CSD, 2011).



Cantonese is often used as an identity indicator. Facing the influx of immigrants and tourists from the Mainland China who speak Mandarin, Hong Kong people would use Cantonese to differentiate and distance themselves from the Mainlanders. It is seen as a representation of their sociocultural features and uniqueness. Apart from the communication needs, people in Hong Kong deploy Cantonese to help portray their individual and community identity.





​

​

​

​













Although the Filipino Hong Kong residents and domestic helpers have to stay in Hong Kong for a period of time, it is interesting that some of them do not find it necessary to learn this dominant language/dialect in the society. Their views vary mainly due to their working environment and social circle.

​

Many of the Filipino residents share that the proficiency in Cantonese may help them to find jobs more easily. Rose points out that knowing Cantonese can benefit them such as getting a higher salary. As a result, she watched local TV programs to learn conversational Cantonese. She learnt it for the sake of greater economic mobility, knowledge of Cantonese is no longer a cultural capital but converted into an economic capital. But after she successfully obtained a stable job not requiring an impressive command of Cantonese, the initiative in learning Cantonese dropped much and her Cantonese has become less competent. 

However, not all of them only focus the potential economic mobility such as job opportunities and career advancement derived from their linguistic knowledge of Cantonese. Louie is passionate to learn Cantonese as he would like to date with local girls. He especially remembers the terms like “Leng Nui靚女( Pretty!)”. He treats Cantonese as a tool to get involved in the local target community.



As to the Filipino domestic helpers, they think Cantonese is important at work. For instance, Layla works for a family in which only the mother knows some Basic English. She sometimes encounters communication problems with the employers; therefore, she is determined to learn Cantonese to resolve this by buying a dictionary and enrolling in a Cantonese language course organized by the Consulate. In a similar way, Lanny takes care of a granny who can only speak Cantonese. She has much pressure to communicate with the granny so she learns Cantonese in leisure. Also, Cantonese is the principal medium of communication between customers and hawkers or the staff in wet markets and supermarkets where they always go for work. 

They both think the acquisition of Cantonese is imperative to understand the local culture and enhance the sense of belonging to Hong Kong. Yet, to them Hong Kong is more likely a temporary working place than a place to live permanently. If Cantonese is not necessary at work, the Filipino domestic helpers would not attempt to learn it, just like the case of Leny, Layla's friend, whose employers only speak English at home, cannot find Cantonese useful for any purpose.

​

​

Whether the Filipinos have the initiative to know Cantonese depends on the value of Cantonese in their workplace, any presence of local friends in their social network and to what extent they want to get involved in the society.