There are many dialects across the country. What common language was used to communicate in ancient China?

This is a very interesting topic. We modern people basically have no barriers to communication. As long as you don't speak foreign languages, there will be no communication barriers throughout China. Moreover, our Chinese language is also broad and profound, and Mandarin can be heard everywhere. Parents also teach their children by words and deeds. In fact, there are so many dialects that it is not difficult for us ancients. In ancient times, there were professional terms for speaking "Mandarin" and "Yayin".

In ancient times, there would not be a common language like ours called "Putonghua". As the saying goes, the pronunciation is different even if we go to the south today, we may not understand them if they speak in dialects. The earliest collective name for language was called Yayan during the Zhou Dynasty. Later, it was called Mandarin during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. This Mandarin was mainly distributed in China's Qinling Mountains, most areas north of the Huaihe River, and parts of Jiangsu, northeastern Anhui, Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, Guizhou, and most of Hubei.

This kind of Mandarin can be subdivided into eight types of Mandarin: Capital Mandarin, Northeast Mandarin, Hebei-Shandong Mandarin, Jiao-Liaoning Mandarin, Jianghuai Mandarin, Central Plains Mandarin, Lanyin Mandarin, and Southwest Mandarin. The unified language formulated during the Song Dynasty was Zhengyin and Yayin. By the Ming Dynasty, Central Plains Yayin had become a unified language, but during the Ming Dynasty, after the integration of northern ethnic groups. The sound of the Central Plains in the Jianghuai area is relatively pure. With Nanjing as the capital, Nanjing Mandarin and Jianghuai Mandarin are the basis. During the Yongle period, the capital was moved to the north, and most of the immigrants from all over the country had Nanjing accents. Later, a Beijing film accent was formed. (Chongzhen may have spoken the authentic Beijing dialect)

In the early Qing Dynasty, Nanjing accent was still the dominant accent, mixed with the capital accent. Come to think of it, Kangxi might have spoken in Northeastern dialect. During the Yongzheng period, Zhengyin officials were also established to promote the Beijing dialect as the official dialect of the capital!

I remember that there seemed to be some people who couldn’t speak Mandarin. For example, Hai Rui and Liu Zongyuan seemed to need translation. Liu Zongyuan was sent to Liuzhou as governor, but he had to need a translator because he couldn't understand what the locals said, and the locals couldn't understand what he said. Hai Rui, because his hometown is Hainan, and as a Hainanese, he definitely doesn’t understand the eight major Mandarin dialects of the Central Plains.

So it is not as difficult for ancient people to communicate as we imagine. They also had their own way of communication. Although they did not form a unified language, almost everyone could understand it, especially those in official circles. This kind of linguistic impact also has a huge impact on us ordinary people.

Human beings need civilization and progress. Only through continuous development and progress can we have a higher civilization. Moreover, in today’s highly integrated and highly civilized society, there are almost no language barriers wherever we go. And as Mandarin becomes more and more popular, it will become easier for us to communicate in the future.