Hainan Island is closer to Guangdong and Guangxi. Why do locals use Minnan?

Because many Minnan people went to Nanyang in ancient times, and some Minnan people chose to settle in Hainan, Guangdong and Guangxi, the cultures and dialects of these places, such as Hainan and Beihai in Guangxi, and Zhanjiang in Guangdong, were all influenced by Minnan dialect. Nowadays, many people in Hainan are from southern Fujian and speak with a strong southern Fujian accent, but it is difficult for locals to understand Cantonese.

Speaking of Hainan Island, we all know that Hainan Province is the southernmost province in China, close to Guangdong and Guangxi. Hainan is also an important tourist province in China. There are countless tourists who come here for vacation every year. With the landing of the free trade zone, Hainan's future development potential is immeasurable. Friends who come to Hainan often deal with local people and find that the accent of Hainan people is similar to that of most southern coastal areas. Mandarin is not very standard, but the dialect spoken seems to be closer to Fujian Minnan dialect than Cantonese, which also makes some people wonder. The nearest places to Hainan Island are Guangdong and southern Guangxi, where Cantonese should be the main language, but why Hainan people are mainly Minnan?

Because many people in Fujian chose to immigrate to Hainan Island in history, they also brought Minnan dialect to Hainan. Before that, Hainan was dominated by Li nationality, and most of Fujian was mountainous, so it was not convenient to communicate with other places. Moreover, Minnan people dared to take risks and fight, so they had a marine civilization, so many of them chose to go out for business. For example, from Nanyang to Southeast Asia, to the Song Dynasty, some in Fujian.

Therefore, residents in Chaoshan and Leizhou Peninsula mainly communicate in Minnan besides Cantonese. Leizhou dialect is very close to Minnan dialect, but it is very different from Cantonese. Now many Hainanese are from Fujian, so it is not surprising to speak a dialect with a Minnan accent.