Hāi! Chinese is the most spoken language in the world, used by more than a billion people in China alone, and by a total of 1.2 billion native speakers. 12.44% of the world's population speaks Mandarin as their first language.

In addition to the People's Republic of China and Taiwan, Mandarin Chinese extends past Chinese territory to be spoken in the important and influential Chinese communities of Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, and Mongolia.

If you wish to learn a language that one in six people in the world speak, this is the one for you.

With all Chinese dialects sharing one writing system of at least fifty thousand symbols, of which you'll need at least three thousand in order to be considered literate, the language is inherently difficult - but fascinating to learn.

Fascinating? Yes! As Nationally Syndicated Talk Host Barry Farber puts it, 'Much is made of our abiliity to read the Chinese soul through the Chinese language.'

'Tomorrow' in Chinese is ming tien, which literally means 'bright day.' The character for 'good' literally depicts a woman with a child, suggesting that a mother and a child are emblematic of everything good. The character meaning 'peace' depicts a woman under a roof. The character for 'discord,' however, is three women under one roof!

Moreover, Mandarin Chinese is key to doing business in the Far East. A significant number of international companies have long-term investments in China, and knowing Chinese lends a competitive edge.

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More About Chinese (Mandarin)

Chinese has no alphabet. Each character is complete unto itself and each must be learned. However, Chinese has two hundred and fourteen radicals, the elements that make up the building blocks for almost every Chinese character. The pronunciation of each character is always one syllable alone, differentiated by tone (four tones in Mandarin Chinese, and nine in Cantonese).

There are at least fifty thousand Chinese characters, but you can carry on fairly sophisticated conversations with knowledge of a few hundred, and you'll be able to read a Chinese newspaper with between two and six thousand.

Chinese requires a different word for 'yes' and 'no' as an answer, depending on the question. That's less complicated than it sounds. When you pose a question in Chinese, you present both alternatives. Instead of 'Are you going?' you'll ask 'You go not go?' (Are you going or not?) The answers then become 'go' or 'not go.'

Language Classes at the Beverly Hills Lingual Institute

The Beverly Hills Lingual Institute offers the most comprehensive selection of language classes in the Los Angeles area.

Classes are held at our facility located at 8383 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 250 in Beverly Hills, California.

Most of our 80-minute classes are scheduled during the evening with the first session running from 6:00 to 7:20 pm, and the second session running from 7:35 to 8:55 pm.

Some classes are also offered during the day. See the schedule for a complete list of all classes.

We all speak one.
Some of us speak several.
A few of us know dozens.

Languages are a staple of everyday life, a necessity for getting by in the world and communicating with each other. They can help you get jobs, help you enjoy another country and culture - and even get you out of trouble.

Choose a language and begin to enjoy the extraordinary benefit of being bilingual or multilingual.

Private Lessons

Some students prefer private lessons instead of a scheduled class, or occasionally take private classes to augment their existing scheduled course. Private lessons are tailored to specific needs, and can be useful if a student's language knowledge is uneven, if a more intensified study program is needed, or if scheduling and privacy is a concern.

With our large staff of native speakers, we can schedule private lessons in most languages.

Private lessons are available in packages of eight, 80-minute sessions; or, if you are enrolled in a class, your private lesson can be scheduled individually.

Alternative Programs

The majority of our scheduled language classes are designed for adult students who want to learn another language. We also offer the following alternative programs.

English | Accent Reduction

Classes evaluate the student's problem areas and focus on exercises designed to target and remedy those areas. Our Accent Reduction course focuses on pronunciation, stress, enunciation, diction, tonality, musicality, syntax, and articulation, through vowel and consonant exercises, work chants, tongue twisters, and readings. Individual attention is given to each student's area of difficulty.

English | Native Speaker

These classes are for those who grew up speaking English but want to improve and refine their English. Designed to give you the critical edge in English communication, they target grammar, spelling, and pronunciation.

Little Linguals

Designed for children aged 6 – 11, our "Little Lingual" classes meet once a week during the afternoon for one hour. Class content includes Alphabet, Songs, Games, Practical Words and Phrases, and Basic Dialogue. Children aged 12 and above can join our regularly scheduled adult classes.

These exciting classes are geared to get an early start on language learning while helping children enjoy and appreciate a different culture. This is the best time for them to learn a foreign language. The younger the learner, the better they are at mimicking new sounds and adopting pronunciation. The brain is open to new sounds and patterns in preadolescence.

Young children have the luxury of taking in a new language naturally. A child's brain is like a sponge that soaks up new vocabulary, sentence structure, words stress, pronunciation and everything that makes up language quickly, easily and, most importantly, without explicit grammatical instruction.

Unfortunately, when you're an adult, learning a new language takes a bit more effort!

Young children have time to learn through play-like activities. Language lessons can be informal and children's minds are not yet cluttered with facts to be stored and tested. Before children become self-conscious, they can try out their newly acquired languages without fear of embarrassment.

Children who grow up learning about languages develop empathy for others and a curiosity for different cultures and ideas, and are better prepared to take their place in a global society. Furthermore, in later years, career opportunities increase for those with additional languages to offer.

Studies by Harvard University confirm that learning additional languages increases critical thinking skills, creativity and flexibility of the mind in young children. Moreover, pupils who learn a foreign language outscore their non-foreign-language-learning peers in standardized verbal and math tests, indicating that learning additional language is a cognitive - and not just linguistic - activity. The brain, like any muscle, functions better with exercise. Learning a language involves memorizing rules and vocabulary, which helps strengthen that mental muscle.

Travel Classes

Our Travel Classes are designed for those who are planning a trip and want to get more out of their travel experience. These classes are held twice a week for one month. They are language classes focused on travel conversation, pronunciation, and culture.

Translating and Interpreting

With a roster of over eighty native-speaking teachers in over 30 different languages, the Beverly Hills Lingual Institute has the expertise to address many translating and interpreting challenges. This is a highly customized service. Please contact us to discuss your translating or interpreting requirements.