Chinese Language Learning. A $7.4B market powered by over 6 million learners, set to double in the next five years.

From China's 60 million strong diaspora, more than 4 million are seeking to achieve or reconfirm proficiency in the language.

The Chinese diaspora refers to the global dispersion of people of Chinese ethnicity and their descendants, who have migrated from China to various parts of the world over time. HolonIQ estimates that nearly 60 million people around the world, living outside China, fit within the definition of this cohort.

The earliest known Chinese migrations occurred during the Han Dynasty (~2,000 years ago), with traders and settlers venturing into Southeast Asia along the Maritime Silk Road to today, where China's growth has led to increased international mobility for Chinese citizens, with many pursuing opportunities in education, work, and investment abroad.

Within the diaspora, we estimate there are approximately 15 million people from 1st generation Chinese families and nearly 45 million people from 2nd and subsequent generation families. Families in the Chinese diaspora are now, more than ever, looking to ensure their children and grandchildren stay connected to their history and culture by learning or retaining Chinese language proficiency.

There are more than 6 million K12 students within this diaspora, more than half of them actively engaged in Chinese language learning. Many speak fluent Chinese at home, and for others Chinese is a second language, as the main language of their household and community is that of the country in which they live and go to school.  Within this cohort, we estimate around 2.5 million K12 diaspora students are receiving paid tutoring for Chinese language learning. 1st Generation Families are more likely to embrace digital as they have stronger language proficiency at home to support higher volumes of video based tutoring and mobile led learning and practice. 2nd+ Generation Families are more likely to send their children to Chinese learning centres and weekend schools. Tutoring intensity varies by cohort with light usage ranging from 30-40 weeks of tutoring per year and heavy closer to 40-50 weeks per year. Each week may include from 1 to 3+ tutoring sessions, with this frequency varying significantly by learner.  Many adults in the diaspora population are engaged in Chinese language learning, but seek high dosage paid tutoring much less frequently than children (or their parents) do.

An additional 2 million ‘non-diaspora’ learners are seeking proficiency in Chinese, again predominantly K12, but a higher number of adult learners.

Beyond the diaspora, many adults and children globally are exploring Chinese culture, cuisine, work and investment and in turn seeking language proficiency. Chinese language learning as a market is a long way behind English, whereby for example 142 countries include English as a mandatory element in their national education curriculum. For adults in many countries around the world, learning English can open participation with new employers and often much higher paying job categories.

Chinese is at the very early stages of achieving the recognition globally that English enjoys today. However, each year we see more diverse examples motivating countries around the world to invest in and accelerate the development of Chinese language learning within their economies.

Just last week (March 2023), the UK announced it was doubling funding dedicated to building expertise on China and boosting Chinese language skills in order for the UK to be able to “engage with and understand China, while protecting national security”. The UK’s Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, said “It’s vital that our diplomats and civil servants have the understanding and expertise to engage and adapt to the increasing challenge posed by China, and China’s growing role in world affairs”.

Meanwhile, in December 2022, during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Saudi Arabia, an agreement was announced for China to provide Saudi Arabia with Chinese language learning material along with Chinese instructors to teach the language and literature in public educational institutions. The MOU includes the training of Saudi teachers in the Chinese language and teaching methods, as well as introducing them to Chinese culture.  We are likely to see similar arrangements forged in other parts of the world over time, particularly across the Middle East and Africa.

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