Words R Us
- Wu Chinese (wuu)

Wu Chinese is spoken by about 90 million people primarily in Zhejiang, Shanghai, southern Jiangsu, and in parts of Anhui, Jiangxi, and Fujian. Wu Chinese is the most ancient of the six major southern Chinese varieties, tracing its origin to more than 3,000 years ago.

Wu is perceived by speakers of other varieties of Chinese as being soft, light and flowing, and as a result is sometimes called The Tender Language of Wu.

Since the founding of the PRC in 1949, people throughout China, including in Wu-speaking areas, have been encouraged to speak Mandarin. Wu has been replaced by Mandarin in the media and schools, and many non-Wu speakers migrated to Wu areas. Nowadays people are discouraged from using Wu in public and administrative affairs, however many people ignore this.

Varieties of Wu are rarely written, and few people believe it is worthwhile to write them or to develop a standard written form for them. There are a few books that teach varieties of Wu in a playful and entertaining way.

There are some TV programs in varieties of Wu with each town having at least one of its own subvariety, however they are not allowed to broadcast during prime time.

Sources: Wikipedia
Omniglot