May 29, 2005 10:04
19 yrs ago
English term
South China
English
Other
Geography
area
Just doing some proofing. Should it be South China (i.e. place name) or southern China??? Or do they both exist?
Responses
Votes to reclassify question as PRO/non-PRO:
Non-PRO (1): humbird
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Responses
+5
53 mins
Nick Lingris
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The word is my oyster
Native in: Greek 
Works in: English to Greek, Greek to English, Greek
Related KudoZ points
:
4
Selected
Either South China or southern China, depending on context
South occurs in the names of some countries, states, and regions.
the Republic of South Korea – a senator from South Carolina – the rivers of South America
Geographically, China is divided into North China, Northeast China, Northwest China, the Lower Yangtze Valley, South China, Southwest China, Western China. This is from the Britannica, but you can also see it here: http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/nations/china2.ht...
Note the capital ‘S’.
However, you would talk of ‘the southern part of the country’ and in historical context you would use ‘southern’:
“Speakers of Tibeto-Burman dialects, who also came from southern China, live in the north and northwest.”
You would also use 'southern' where you do not need to stress the regional or physiographic sense.
“The ranges also form a sharp divide in climate, for they shelter southern China from the cold, continental north winds.”
[Both of the above examples are from the Britannica.]
Note the lower-case ‘s’.
the Republic of South Korea – a senator from South Carolina – the rivers of South America
Geographically, China is divided into North China, Northeast China, Northwest China, the Lower Yangtze Valley, South China, Southwest China, Western China. This is from the Britannica, but you can also see it here: http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/explore/nations/china2.ht...
Note the capital ‘S’.
However, you would talk of ‘the southern part of the country’ and in historical context you would use ‘southern’:
“Speakers of Tibeto-Burman dialects, who also came from southern China, live in the north and northwest.”
You would also use 'southern' where you do not need to stress the regional or physiographic sense.
“The ranges also form a sharp divide in climate, for they shelter southern China from the cold, continental north winds.”
[Both of the above examples are from the Britannica.]
Note the lower-case ‘s’.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
sergey (X)
29 mins
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Thank you, Sergey.
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| agree |
Sven Petersson
34 mins
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Thanks, Sven.
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| agree |
Robert Donahue (X)
3 hrs
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Thank you, Robert.
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| neutral |
humbird
: I really appreciate your encycropedic and enlighting answer. However, I believe there is no such place as South China (in a sense like South Carolina as you pointed out). Asker apprears to wanting to know if such place as Sourth China does exist.
4 hrs
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Not as a state, but as a distinct geographical unit there seems to exist a South China, according to the Britannica at least. Context is important. He can't change the name of the South China Morning Post, for example.
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| agree |
conejo
: South China does exist as a geographical region, but it is not "official". There are lots of companies that use the name for example, and it often appears in articles as well. However "southern China" should also be acceptable.
8 hrs
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Never said otherwise. Pity we haven't got any context from the asker.
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| agree |
Vicky Papaprodromou
14 hrs
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Graded automatically based on peer agreement."
1 min
David Hollywood
Native in English
&
English
worked for int. orgs (IMF, OAS, IDB)
Native in: English
Works in: Spanish to English, German to English
Related KudoZ points
:
4
South China
:)
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Note added at 1 min (2005-05-29 10:05:51 GMT)
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scmp.com is the online edition of the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong\'s English language newspaper, bringing you daily news and business updates ...
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Note added at 2 mins (2005-05-29 10:06:23 GMT)
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Welcome to the South China Public Library. Our hours are: Wednesday, 10am-Noon; 2-5pm; 6:30-8pm Saturday, 10am-Noon; 1-3pm ...
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Note added at 2 mins (2005-05-29 10:07:02 GMT)
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Introduction to South China Diving Club, a Hong Kong based scuba diving club.
www.scdc.org.hk/ - 17k - 27 May 2005 - Cached - Similar pages
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Note added at 3 mins (2005-05-29 10:07:41 GMT)
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... Nepcon South China/ EMT South China 2004 – Celebrating its 10th ... 37% of China\'s Electronics & Information Market in South China and Still Growing ...
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Note added at 1 min (2005-05-29 10:05:51 GMT)
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scmp.com is the online edition of the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong\'s English language newspaper, bringing you daily news and business updates ...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 mins (2005-05-29 10:06:23 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Welcome to the South China Public Library. Our hours are: Wednesday, 10am-Noon; 2-5pm; 6:30-8pm Saturday, 10am-Noon; 1-3pm ...
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 mins (2005-05-29 10:07:02 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
Introduction to South China Diving Club, a Hong Kong based scuba diving club.
www.scdc.org.hk/ - 17k - 27 May 2005 - Cached - Similar pages
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 3 mins (2005-05-29 10:07:41 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
... Nepcon South China/ EMT South China 2004 – Celebrating its 10th ... 37% of China\'s Electronics & Information Market in South China and Still Growing ...
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
humbird
: I believe asker wants to know whether such a place like "South China" exists as Proper Noun. You are not addressing to the question.
5 hrs
|
+3
3 mins
Sarah Brenchley
Native in English
&
English
Professional, Precise and Punctual
Native in: English
Works in: Spanish to English, English, English to Spanish, and 1 more.
Southern China
Personally I would say Southern China as it is part of the same country but in the southern part - like Northern France or Southern Italy. Unlike North America or North Korea which are considered to be separate countries.
All the best.
Sarah.
All the best.
Sarah.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
humbird
: I believe there is no such place as South China (Proper Noun). This is meant to a broader geographic area in China proper.
4 hrs
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I totally agree.
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| agree |
juvera
: But I wouldn't capitalise "southern", it is only referring to the position of the region within the country, as an adjective.
5 hrs
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Yes, I agree too - it should be southern China
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| agree |
Alfa Trans (X)
7 hrs
|
1 hr
both are possible depending on context
we often prefer 'eastern, northern' etc when we are talking about vague, indefinite or larger areas, and 'east, north' etc for more clearly defined places (e.g. the names of countries or states). Cf.:
- southern Africa (an area)
- South Africa ( a country)
the northern United States
North Carolina
however, place names do not always follow this rule:
East/South etc Asia BUT: Western/Eastern etc Europe
South Australia BUT: Western Australia
'practical english usuage' by michael swan, oxford uni press 2005
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Note added at 1 hr 55 mins (2005-05-29 11:59:28 GMT)
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i should have probably also added about capital letters from the same source:
capital letters are used at the beginning of East, Eastern, North, Northern etc.when these come in official or well-established palce names.
North Carolina
Western Australia
the Far East
in other cases, adjectives, nouns and adverbs begin with small letters.
We spent the winter in southern California
- southern Africa (an area)
- South Africa ( a country)
the northern United States
North Carolina
however, place names do not always follow this rule:
East/South etc Asia BUT: Western/Eastern etc Europe
South Australia BUT: Western Australia
'practical english usuage' by michael swan, oxford uni press 2005
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 hr 55 mins (2005-05-29 11:59:28 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
i should have probably also added about capital letters from the same source:
capital letters are used at the beginning of East, Eastern, North, Northern etc.when these come in official or well-established palce names.
North Carolina
Western Australia
the Far East
in other cases, adjectives, nouns and adverbs begin with small letters.
We spent the winter in southern California
+1
4 hrs
not for grading
I think everyone is correct - but southern China is used by well-respected journalistic sources - I think when referring to the general southern area - "southern China"is most appropriate while "south China" sounds more specific to me. A majority of South China hits are followed by "sea".
... is that [SARS] has been circulating in another species in southern China, ... Special Winter Savings: Get on year of National Geographic for only $19. ...
news.nationalgeographic.com/ news/2003/05/0506_030506_sarschina.html
National Geographic's Strange Days on Planet Earth ... First described in Taiwan in the early 1900s, it is endemic to southern China. ...
www.pbs.org/strangedays/glossary/F.html -
... is that [SARS] has been circulating in another species in southern China, ... Special Winter Savings: Get on year of National Geographic for only $19. ...
news.nationalgeographic.com/ news/2003/05/0506_030506_sarschina.html
National Geographic's Strange Days on Planet Earth ... First described in Taiwan in the early 1900s, it is endemic to southern China. ...
www.pbs.org/strangedays/glossary/F.html -
Discussion