Local varieties of Chinese are conventionally classified into seven dialect groups, largely on the basis of the different evolution of Middle Chinese voiced initials :
- Mandarin (including Standard Chinese, Pekinese, Sichuanese, and also the Dungan language spoken in Central Asia)
- Wu (including Shanghainese, Suzhounese, and Wenzhounese)
- Gan
- Xiang
- Min (including Fuzhounese, Hainanese, Hokkien, Taiwanese and Teochew)
- Hakka
- Yue (including Cantonese and Taishanese)
The classification of Li Rong, which is used in the Language Atlas of China (1987), distinguishes three further groups :
- Jin, previously included in Mandarin.
- Huizhou, previously included in Wu.
- Pinghua, previously included in Yue.
Some varieties remain unclassified, including Danzhou dialect (spoken in Danzhou, on Hainan Island), Waxianghua (spoken in western Hunan) and Shaozhou Tuhua (spoken in northern Guangdong).
Class of Mandarin 