6. Similarities between Danish and Chinese languages
It is fairly certain that the horse was domisticated and harnessed to chariots by the Indo-European tribes on the Eurasian steppe more than five thousand years ago, thereby gaining a great military advantage. Unlike the Chinese river valleys, the steppe - covered with grass - was naturally suitable for horse breeding and chariot driving. Almost four thousand years ago, a people appeared in Denmark - probably the Indo-Europeans - with a highly developed bronze technology, despite the fact that tin and copper were not found in Scandinavia. Almost four thousand years ago, mounted Indo-European tribes with chariots poured into what is now India, Iran and Europe, leaving behind their culture, genes, language and technology of horses and bronze casting.
It is tempting to think that the ancient Chinese dynasties, Xia, Shang and Zhou, were founded by mounted Indo-European conquerors from the steppe in a similar way, since there were no geographical obstacles between the grasslands of Inner Mongolia and the rice fields along the Yellow River - also because China has been conquered several times since by horsemen from the steppe.
But in India, Iran and Europe, Indo-European conquerors left behind their language and thus a sure evidence of that they had been there. They may have done so in China as well, but here the language of the past is hidden behind the non-phonetic characters, the characteristic tones and the fact that the Chinese language is developing at breakneck speed, and it probably also did in the past.
Diligent linguists are trying to recreate the Chinese language of the past - and thereby be able to demonstrate any relationship to other old languages, including Indo-European - using old rhyme tables that specify the pronunciation of the characters.
1. The Asiamen from Asia
The Dani, Switheudi, Thuringi, Jutes and Aesirs were in all probability groups of related peoples, few in numbers, who originally came from Asia from a homeland near China. The Dani displaced the Heruli as Jordanes tells us. The Switheudi, as Jordanes mentions, were the Svea. The Thuringi were the Thüringians, who were later defeated by the Franks. The Jutes were the Jutes known from Jutland, who, according to the venerable Bede, lived in the country north of the Angles and south of the Goths. The Aesirs or Asiamen, as Snorri called them, settled in the Gudme area in southeast Funen, which at that time was still covered with primeval forest and only slightly cultivated. Own work
Snorri tells quite clearly that Odin and the Aesirs came from Asia and they spread their language all over the northern countries: "All these lineages became so numerous that they spread all around Saxony and over all the northern countries, so that their, the Asian men's, tongue became the proper tongue of these countries. From the fact that the names of their ancestors are recorded, it is believed that it can be deduced that these names have followed this tongue, and that the Aesirs have brought it with them to the northern countries, to Norway and Sweden, to Denmark and Saxony."
"Asia" is a rather broad term - especially for that time - and perhaps simply referred to the Aesir's homeland somewhere "to the east". But because of the linguistic similarities with Chinese mentioned here, similarities between Scandinavian and Han dynasty building styles, heraldry and mythology, one must conclude that the original home of the Aesirs must have been near China.
2. Single words
Danish and Chinese words that are similar to each other.
It is called "mama" and "papa" both in China and Europe. It is true that they say "bapa" in China, but you only notice that, when you listen carefully. It is a Chinese family term to say it twice, so originally it must have been "ma" and "pa".
The Danish family term for "father" is "far", and it is very close to the Chinese word for the same, as this is actually pronounced "bar", as the falling tone can be described with a final closing sound, here "r".
Look, this is a similarity between Danish and Chinese in very basic words.
In Old Danish the word "mar" means horse. Hence the expression "mareridt" (means ride on horse - bad dream). The village of Martofte on Funen is named after an enclosure, where horses used to grass. In Chinese, "horse" is also called: "ma".
Chinese people would like to emphasize that the word "ma" for horse is something completely different and unique, because it must be pronounced with the third tone, which is falling-rising. But the Chinese tones originally describe what would be endings in alphabetically described languages, as we see about this with "ba" with a falling tone, which sounds like "bar".
Town sign for the village of Martofte on Funen
"Jo", a typical Danish affirmative word, also has its match in Chinese, which is pronounced something like "jo-oh". As you can see, it is also in the third tone. It is affirmative, and means "yes - there is", just like in Danish.
In Chinese, a note (in music) is called "lu", which is pronounced "ly", and it corresponds very closely to the Danish "lyd" (sound).
To produce a sound in Chinese is called "shen ying", which is pronounced something like "shyng jing", and it is similar to the Danish "synge" (to sing), and the meaning is also very close.
The second person singular in Swedish is called "ni", just like in Chinese.
"Long" is called "trang" (narrow) in Chinese. When something is long, it is also, by its very nature, relatively narrow .
Water is called "swe-e" (third tone) in Chinese. It sounds exactly like saying "sweat" (svede) in Danish, and it also has something to do with water. To sweat is to produce water.
The Chinese call their country "Zhongguo" according to Pinyin alphabetization, "Zhong" means the middle and "guo" means area. It is pronounced something like "Djung Gjår", and it actually means "Mid-gård". In Danish, "gård" means an area that is fairly closely delimited by walls or fences, and so it means in Chinese.
Furthermore, these consonants followed by a "j" or an "i" are quite familiar to danish from Old Danish in the form of "Kjærgården", "kjærlighed" or in Anders Sørensen Vedel (1542) "Kierling", which means something like "old bitch".
3. Grammatical similarities
There are also grammatical similarities between Danish - an old Indoeuropean language - and Chinese.
In Danish we have a very convenient grammatical negation. We just have to put "u-" in front of a word, and the meaning of the word becomes the opposite. Just think of uhyggelig (uncozy), uafbrudt (uninterrupted), uafgjort (not decided - a draw) and uhøflig (unpolite), just to name a few examples. It is also found in other Indoeuropean languages like English and German, where you put un- in front
Similarities between Danish and Chinese words.
In Chinese you have a very similar negation. You put "bu-" in front of a word and the meaning becomes the opposite.
For example, "good" is called "hao", and bad is called "bu-hao"; beautiful is called piao-liang and ugly is called bu-piao-liang; "yes" is called "shi-de", while "no" is called "bu-shi", i.e. not-yes, or simply "bu", as also used in Danish as a frightening expression. It is said that ghosts should say "buh".
In Danish, verbs can be made adjective-like by adding the ending "-ende" or just "-de". (similar to English -ing), for example "løbe" (run) can become the adjective-like "løb-ende" (running - i.g. a running man) and "tale" (talk) can become to "talende" (talking).
Numerals can also become adjective-like by adding "-de" or similar, for example "fjerde" (fourth), "syvende" (seventh), "niende" (nineth) and so on.
In Chinese, words are made adjective-like with very much the same ending. Chinese call their country "Zhongguo", if we talk about a Chinese woman (nuren), it will be a "Zhongguode nuren, as "Zhongguo" becomes adjectiv-like. "Blue" is called "lanzi", and a blue house (fangzi) will then be "lanzide fangzi" as blue becomes adjectiv-like.
Chinese character for son. It is used countless times in Chinese to indicate that this person, concept or thing is derived from something else, like a son is derived from the father. The classic Danish and Norwegian -sen ending in family names, such as Hansen, Jensen, Johansen, Nielsen, Andersen, Pedersen, Rasmussen and so on, originally meant the son of Hans, Jens, Johan, Niels, Anders, Peder and Rasmus.
Danish has different ways to make verbs noun-like. Among others, we can add "-se".
Similarities between Danish and Chinese words.
"At føle" is a verb; by adding the ending "-se" it can be made into the noun-like notion, "følel-se" (feeling - i.g. he has the feling). "Overraske" (to surprise) is a verb; by adding the ending "-se" it can be made into a noun and thus become "overraskel-se" (a surprise).
The nominal ending -se can be found in Chinese, where it also used to emphasize the noun-like; for example in "child", "hai-zi" as the ending -zi is pronounced -se, in "books", "bei-zi", in "wheat", "mai-zi", "prince", "wang-zi". The Chinese character for "-zi" is the basic character for "son", which expresses that the word or concept is derived from something else as the son is derived from the father.
