Cantonese speech development

Abstract Cantonese is a tone language with nine lexical tones. Its speech sound inventory includes 19 consonants, 11 vowels, 11 diphthongs, and no consonant clusters. Chinese script is a logographic writing system with characters as the basic unit. Studies on children’s acquisition of Cantonese speech have demonstrated language-specific features as well as patterns common in the acquisition of English. Researchers have focused on Cantonese speech problems related to speech sound disorders, hearing impairment, and cleft palate. Common speech assessments include the Hong Kong Cantonese Articulation Test and the Cantonese Segmental Phonology Test.