Many Singaporean Chinese assume that as long as they know to speak Chinese(they think they no need to write Chinese) and speak their own dialect group and some of they think that knowing some of the Chinese culture and customs with basic understanding of them, they are Chinese true and blue.

What do you think makes a Chinese a Chinese?

i would say chinese culture/language btu i would put culture first. though language comes a very close second

Oddly enough I find myself being super retrograde on this point. This question made me realise that I always assumed I'm Chinese because both of my parents were Chinese. And even if I knew little or nothing of Chinese language, culture and history I would probably still persist in that belief. So I voted for "other".

My ancestors originated in the part of the world that is known as China. That, to me, is enough to make me Chinese.

Other factors are only secondary:
I speak one of the languages of China (but Chinese who can't are still Chinese)
I read and write a script that comes from China (but illiterate Chinese are still Chinese)
I observe the customs and traditions of one of the ethnic groups of China (but Chinese who don't are still Chinese)
I know the history of various states and empires that have existed in China (but Chinese who don't are still Chinese)

The above four factors can make me feel more in touch with China, even though I have lived outside China all my life. But ancestry is by far the most important of all. If my grandparents were not from China, I would not be Chinese. It is as simple as that.

Hear hear, excellent reasoning.

I agree with Richard Lim's point too.

I've always thought my parents = Chinese, their parents = Chinese, therefore, I'm Chinese. Simplistic but true.

Though I originally thought myself a foreigner in America, due to childhood experiences where bullies made me feel as if I was something other than American, but that has changed too.

I would personally say ancestry too =D as Yun said, cuz if a chinese(ie overseas chinese) can't read(culture), speak(language) and doesn't know his or her chinese history...he/she is still a chinese no matter what

Normally in countries liek Thailand Philippines Myanmar Laos...many Overseas Chinese can no longer speak Chinese. but they are still chiense in that they keep the chinese culture and religion alive.

So..., you are Chinese American I guess?

China consist of several ethnic groups with different ethnic languages and culture China is a melting pot. What makes one a Chinese is as long as China the nation exist we are all Chinese.

We maybe Singaporean, American, Canadian, English, Malaysian, Pilipino, Indonedian Chinese etc. etc. our spirit will always be Chinese the only time we ceased to be Chinese is when our descendant begin to merge with none Chinese up to the 3rd or 4th generation. Example: Chinese+ none Chinese = 50% Chinese; 50% Chinese + none Chinese = 25% Chinese; 25% Chinese + none Chinese = 10 or 0% Chinese.

My parents are Chinese of Quanzhou, Xiamen China me like my father can not speak, read or write mandarin but we speak well in our ethnic language "min nan hua" or hokkian I am educated and through the English language I learn about China plus because of my physical features I am always treated as a Chinese by others.

I am illiterate in mandarin but I am not illiterate in my tradition, culture and heritage. My heart is Chinese.....as the music goes.... "wo de xin, si chung guo xin"

Hello Everyone, I'm new.

So, I don't agree much with any of the above. I think someone who is of Chinese descent, speaks Chinese, has extensive knowledge of China or is culturally Chinese could call themselves Chinese if they wanted to. Mostly I believe if one considers oneself Chinese (which has a certain responsibility attached), then that is enough. Politically, the only true Chinese are the ones considered so by the PRC Government, which rules out most people claiming so on those 4 reasons, but of course that is just as rubbish as the definition of British nationality which from this May requires candidates to pass a test on the English language, culture and current affairs...

Now, I spent a year in China, my wife is Chinese, my Chinese is a strong 2cd language, I understand chinese culture and history, and geogrpahy quite well, and after I graduate from university, I plan to spend the rest of my life there. Hopefully I can get Chinese citizenship, because it would mean a lot to me, as well as make things generally easier. On the other hand, the half of me that is english and the half that is german don't mean much at all, and since I don't much respect these countries or my roots in them, I probably don't deserve citizenship in them either. It's all about where you feel you belong, I suppose.

Hi Liao Hua, welcome to CHF!

I gather from your words that you would hope to be considered a Chinese after getting PRC citizenship, depite having been born in Britain? That is certainly justified. However, my guess is that you will at best be considered a 'sinicized Englishman' by people around you, although your children (if you choose to have any) will stand a good chance of being considered as Chinese by their peers, especially if they bear Chinese names and a sinicized surname.

And if they have sinicised features. I think Liao Hua and his descendents can certainly be considered zhongguoren 中国人

The trend especially with overseas Chinese seem to be to make a distinction between ethnicity 华人 versus nationality 中国人

Actually I think my experiences are slightly different from most of you. The fact that I consider myself ethnic Chinese is a result of people telling me I am Chinese since birth, my family, school, the government,in fact it says right here on my IC I am Chinese. So my identification as an ethnic Chinese is a result of my social environment. Knowing that my ancestors come from China has less of an impact than the fact that I am culturally Chinese and continue to be. In a way, it is society that has defined me as Chinese.

Thanks for your welcome.

Yes I am British, and would like hope to acquire PRC Citizenship eventually. I read somewhere, only 300 British people and in total only 4000-5000 people from western countries have been granted this. In comparison, over 600,000 华人 (two thirds from Hong Kong) have been granted British Citizenship, and perhaps tens of millions throughout Europe and North America. Part of that must be that with the PRC having no tolerance for dual nationality, a lot of people would feel restricted by having a Chinese Passport, which doesn't get you into many places. But also, I seem to get the feeling that China doesn't want too many such people, in case they have to create a new ethnic minority or something? I really don't know, but it'll all change in the next few decades, I believe.

I realise that I wouldn't be fully accepted by the Chinese society, even after becoming a PRC Citizen, but that too would probably change as a side effect of modernisation. Just as nobody takes any notice anymore whether people in the UK are British Chinese, British Asian, British African etc. because we are so used to it. It would be very nice if I could feel the same as everyone around me in China, despite my skin color, but that is totally unrealistic. When I visited my wife's village in 苏北, none of the people there would have a normal conversation with me, since they were so busy staring and laughing at the first foreigner they had ever met. The only questions I got asked were why my eyes aren't blue/hair isn't blonde and whether or not I had a US Dollar to show them. Clearly if you are lucky enough to not experience that anywhere, then you surely can be considered Chinese.

IMO it depends on the preconditions of his integration into a Chinese community. There are two aspects: 1) one's own ethnic markers and, 2), the degree to which these ethnic markers matter to the Chinese community where he wants to live.

Without a community one cannot be ethnic. But local Chinese communities are obviously different from each other. Therefore, one can suppose that subethnic markers play a role when someone is accepted as a Chinese. In this sense, it depends on the communities whether they accept e.g. desinicised members or not. Self-identification and the statements of non-Chinese are thus not valid criteria as for Chinese ethnicity. That's what I think.

Well, my father would have turned in his grave, if I dare to say I am not a Chinese. Difficult in all counts; I look Chinese, I read Chinese (badly sometimes), I speak Chinese (the Mainland Chinese thought I speak pretty well), and I like things Chinese, (that is why I have been visiting China twice in five months). However, my birth certificate would put me a Singaporean and race - Chinese, and since some people don't even like the Singaporean use of "race", then, in any case, I am a Singaporean Chinese, some may consider Chinese Singaporean... but then, I am first a Singaporean and then a Chinese. (Hope that explains my perchant towards Singaporean Chinese).

At the end of the day, it is not my exterior or what language I speak that would determine who I am, it might identify me, but certainly not define the person of me... I am a Chinese, because I feel like one, if an Englishman feels like a Chinese, he is a Chinese, at least in his soul. Why put people into boxes?

Precisely. Its sure nice to have you back.

Yes, it's true that it's very difficult for a foreigner to gain citizenship or green card in China. I think the government's underlying logic is China is already overpopulated why encourage foreign immigration. So they only give citizenship or green card to foreigners they think 'helpful' like experts China needs. A pretty narrow minded mentality I would say.

Being stared at all the time is really uncomfortable. Subei is still a relatively close (some will say backward) place. Most people have never seen anyone other than yellow race before, TV only increased their curiosity. I think if you live in any rural village in China or Japan, it won't get any better. But if you are living in Beijing, Shanghai or Harbin(A city actually built by Russians, and used to have the biggest Russian population outside Russia.) Being a white guy and marry to a Chinese wife is really not a big deal now.

Also, I think in Chinese value system, family and personal relationship are always placed far ahead of nationality and race, not a good thing sometime as when it spawned croneyism, but as time goes on, I believe they would not have problem to accept you as a true family member.

Chinese is a citizenship - e.g. someone who holds a Chinese passport (even if he doesn't look Chinese - whatever that means).

Hua people, on the other hand, has to do with bloodline or culture, or both. e.g. I have Hua ancestors, I study Hua language and culture, and I attend functions organized by other Hua people. So I am a Hua perosn whether I hold an EU passpost or Kazakstan passport.

It is the quality of the person that counts.

a person like a tree, a tree need sun light , water, soild, aire etc. to make.
so a person need all above things to make

It is no doubt that Southern Chinese do have a mixture of Han and the Yue + Wu blood, in addition the Northern Chinese do have the Mongol, Manchu and Turk blood in them. But what really brings all the Han Chinese together is the fact that we have a common ancestry from the Central Plains. Culture and a somewhat common language is what also brings Han together. If you look at Shanghainese for example, you can see alot of them who look abit Yue..same goes with Hong Kong people. Go to Beijing, you'll see many of those who look abit turk, mongol and manchu. To conclude, there is no pure Han Chinese. What really is Han Chinese is the mixture of the Hua tribe from the central plains with the Yue, Wu, Mongol and Manchu people.

Look at me for example, i am Southern Chinese(Cantonese) and alot of people think i am Korean (so that mean a North Asian look)..no joke lol There was this one time i asked this greek guy what ethnicity he was and when it was my turn, he guessed Korean. I said i am Chinese..he was like you look very Korean than Chinese Lol So it means i do have more significant Han blood than Yue and which is the case everywhere else in China..therefore there is no pure Han - everyone is mix ^^

I wouldn't place too much important on what an average european think you look like.

I have asked europeans and they can't even distinguish a malay from a chinese or a filipino from a chinese. They look the same to them even though the different is quite major.

Well actually i have asked other europeans who could tell the difference and they thought i look korean. What's also funny is that some Japanese and koreans think i am one of theirs, when i am in the streets.. I also work at my father's restaurant and we had this Korean bus from NYC and some of them spoke to me in Korean as though i was one.

people here in the states generalise me as chinese by my look...even my japanese, Thai, other southeastern asian coutry friends have been called chinese....so we all chinese muhaha.

They even call my dog chinese too.....he's a chow chow who was born in kansas, USA. HOW DARE THEY!!! LOL

By the same token I've run across many Chinese who can't distinguish one Asian group from another. Even in a modern city such as Hong Kong you'll find many Chinese who can't tell an Indonesian from a Filipino or a Tibetan from a Nepalese... or a Thai from a Vietnamese.

Go figure.

I think, first of all is always ancestry roots. Then if you want to define "chineseness", it might mean knowledge of culture/language etc.

This is how I see it. I was born in China, my parents were born in China, so were their parents and those before them, I speak fluent Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin, Taisanese), I can read and write Chinese with ease (both simplified and traditional), I am very knowledgeable in Chinese history, and I'm even well versed in Chinese poetry. If that doesn't make me Chinese, I don't know what does.

It's really diffucult trying to define Chinese, everyone seems to have a different definition.

I guess, for me culture would come first. It's not fair to say that someone of non-Chinese descent who was born and raise in China is less Chinese than someone like me, who is of Chinese descent but was born in the US, has never been to China, can barely speak/write the language. Though, I have some knowledge of Chinese culture and history, I feel I'm still looking at it from an outsider's perspective and the way I speak, act, etc. is American.

I consider anyone who has one drop of Chinese blood as Chinese. I think an oversea Chinese may not be able to speak, read, or write Chinese, and he/she may not even be looking like a Chinese, as long as he/she has a drop of Chinese blood, I will consider him/her Chinese. I met someone in Church one time who has blonde hair and brown eyes, but she said she was a Chinese (I think 1/8).

I also consider anyone who culturally identifies himself or herself as Chinese Chinese. That was the way many other races became Chinese in the ancient time, and I think it's great.

I know quite a few ABCs here whom I do not consider to be Chinese. To me, they feel more like of a status somewhere in between. Genetically, they are fully Chinese, but they can't speak the language, any dialect of Chinese, they know little about Chinese history. And when they try to say a few words in any Chinese dialect, they don't know what they're saying, yet they still feel good. Sometimes they say they are Chinese, the other times they deny it; overseas born Chinese tend to have identity confusion issues a lot.
That's torturing me.
"Be honest, you are not Chinese! Doesn't matter what colour your skin is, if you are totally alienated from the essence of Chinese culture, you are not Chinese at all!"
My definition of ethnic Chinese is: a person who is a native speaker of any language or dialect that is used in the territories of PRC and ROC today (such as, Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese, Shanghainese, Korean, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uyghur, etc.), embraces any stream of culture in the territories of PRC and ROC as his/her primary cultural affiliation; wishes to learn further of his/her primary culture; and, EMBRACES A CHINESE IDENTITY (This is the most important).
Take myself for example:
I am a native Mandarin speaker, my primary cultural affiliation is of the modern Beijing culture, wish to learn more about Chinese language, yet, I WISH TO EMBRACE AN AUSTRALIAN IDENTITY INSTEAD OF THE CHINESE ONE, therefore, according to my own definition, I am not really Chinese though I still hold Chinese citizenship (which, hopefully, shall cease in just over a year's time)

I think ancestry, language and culture are necessary.

A) Chinese definition = 1) mostly ancestry from the father side regardless of where you are, 2) as long as you are aware of it and identify yourself as such. Need 1) + 2)
Result: may or maynot gain acceptance by others as Chinese; or may or may not accept that u r Chinese but in reality u r still chinese haha...

Western definition = chinese thinking, speak language, citizenship, location.
This concept works well for western countries, especiually for those with extensive recent colonial experiences such as UK, France, USA, Canada, and less so in Germany, Italy..However, for Chinese this concept does not take into consideration the cultural definition of Chinese from a Chinese perpsective, ie if your ancestor is not really Chinese, you will never become a real Chinese even through you go thru marriage, acculturation, language learning, location; instead you just become a sinified foereigner in the eyes of other chinese. Same for other east asian cultured countries such as Korea, Japan & Vietnam.

What if it's the mother's side.