Impact of Chinese Dialects on Language Transfer in Second Language Acquisition

Abstract: The phenomenon of language transfer has long been a core topic of investigation in the fields of applied linguistics, second language (L2) acquisition, and language teaching. Due to the vastness of China, there is a wide variety of dialects that are spoken throughout the country, each with distinctive traits that set them apart from standard Chinese in terms of vocabulary, phonology, and syntax. It is evident that these dialects, such as Cantonese and Hokkien (Min dialects), exhibit notable differences in phonology and pronunciation. Moreover, they are distinguished by their unique expressions, grammatical structures, and idioms. In the process of learning English as a second language (ESL), native Chinese speakers studying English are susceptible to the influence of dialects, which may result in either positive or negative language transfer effects. In this paper, through the method of literature review, the development and current status of transfer theory in second language acquisition are discussed in depth, with emphasis on the positive and negative transfer effects of dialects in the process of second language acquisition. Furthermore, the paper explores the practical impact of the transfer phenomenon on students English phonological learning and teachers English phonological teaching, aiming at optimizing learning strategies and helping learners to enhance their language learning ability and improve the efficiency of language learning.