This is the first article in a two-part series exploring how Chinese culinary terms came to be included in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).

For more than two decades, I have studied how Chinese words enter the English language, particularly through food. So when the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) released its second batch of updates this past June, one updated entry felt especially meaningful to me: “Cantonese.” For the first time, the dictionary formally recognized the word as a culinary term, defining it as food prepared in the style of Guangzhou and the surrounding region in southern China, as well as the restaurants that serve such cuisine.

The entry is accompanied not just by a simple definition, but by a timeline of citations tracing the term’s culinary history. The earliest example dates back to April 6, 1892, when New Jersey’s Trenton Times referred to “Fashionable Cantonese dishes.” This phrase shows that the term was already being used in relation to food more than a century ago, long before the era of modern globalization.

Western interest in Cantonese cuisine also stretches back to the late 19th century. The OED cites an 1894 report from The Washington Post describing a dim sum dumpling as “shaped exactly like a fishing creel.” By 1908, The New York Herald was explaining the dish to its readers by comparing it to a “second cousin to steamed sponge cake.” These early descriptions reveal how unfamiliar foods were introduced to Western audiences through comparisons with things they already understood.

Over the following decades, Cantonese cuisine continued to leave its mark. A 1950 publication by the Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association highlighted “Cantonese specialties” such as turnip pudding, while a 1997 culinary memoir recalled dining at a large “Cantonese restaurant” where dim sum was served from rolling trolleys. More recently, a 2015 article in The Guardian recommended Wong Chi Kee in Hong Kong for its “traditional Cantonese congee.”

These citations connect to a broader ecosystem of existing terms. The Cantonese practice of yum cha, literally “drinking tea,” the social meal of dim sum and tea traditionally enjoyed in the morning, was added to the dictionary in 2016, while dim sum has appeared in the dictionary since 1989.

Today, my research shows that the dictionary contains a vocabulary of 25 Cantonese culinary terms. Beyond the widely recognized dim sum and yum cha, the list includes char siu, wonton, chop suey, hoisin sauce, egg foo yung, and moo goo gai pan. These are no longer treated as foreign concepts requiring lengthy explanations; they have become established English words.

Yet this lexicographical milestone is not simply a retrospective look at history; it also reflects a living culture. Just months earlier, in March 2026, three new additions expanded the OED’s Cantonese culinary vocabulary: dan tat (egg tart), pineapple bun, and yin yeung (a Hong Kong drink combining milk tea and coffee). Their inclusion highlights that Cantonese cuisine is not a static relic of the past. It continues to evolve, innovate, and influence the English language. This ongoing linguistic exchange shows that the relationship between East and West remains an active and continuing process.

The contrast with other regional Chinese cuisines highlights that global influence is not simply a product of modern international presence. Shanghai, for instance, is one of China’s most globally connected cities, yet its local Benbang cuisine has left far fewer traces in the English language. Cantonese cuisine’s deep roots in English developed instead through generations of migration, trade, and everyday use.

Etymologically, “Cantonese” derives from “Canton,” the former English name for Guangzhou, which was first recorded by Portuguese traders in the 16th century. Over time, the term evolved from a geographic reference into a marker of a distinct cultural and culinary identity. This reflects a broader historical reality: Cantonese cuisine established an overseas presence earlier than many other regional Chinese cuisines, spreading through centuries of maritime trade and migration.

Historically, because the vast majority of early Chinese immigrants to many Western countries came from Guangdong, Cantonese restaurants dominated many Chinatowns. Iconic establishments such as New York’s Port Arthur Restaurant, which opened in 1897 and introduced upscale Cantonese dishes to Western diners, and San Francisco’s Shanghai Low, a Cantonese restaurant that adopted a Shanghai-inspired name to appeal to Western customers, did more than serve food. They became gathering places for immigrant communities and helped establish Cantonese cuisine’s prominence in Western societies.

As a linguist, I often argue that translation is not merely a tool for communication between languages; it is also a means of cultural understanding. The inclusion of these terms shows that English speakers are capable of adopting culinary vocabulary from other languages on its own terms.

For readers interested in exploring this vocabulary, here are eight popular Cantonese culinary terms currently included in the OED, with condensed definitions for clarity.

Many of the early Cantonese restaurants that introduced these dishes to Western audiences have since disappeared. Yet the vocabulary they helped popularize has endured, and a new generation of Cantonese restaurants continues to thrive in Chinatowns and communities around the world. The OED’s recognition of Cantonese cuisine reflects this longer history of cultural exchange: carried across borders by generations of immigrants, Cantonese food has become a lasting part of the global culinary vocabulary.

(Header and in-text images: Visuals from VCG, edited by Ding Yining/Sixth Tone)