 Their ancestors are said to have arrived from what is today central China about less than a thousand years ago and migrated into Guangdong around the Tang Dynasty rule period, and thus Taishanese as a dialect of Yue Chinese has linguistically preserved many characteristics of Middle Chinese.The Taishanese are part of the Yue Chinese family and have an identity that distinguishes themselves from the dominant Cantonese people.Among the Han Chinese, Taishanese are a source for many famous international Chinese celebrities and have produced the largest numbers of Chinese actors and singers than any other region in mainland China.