Taishanese originates from the Taishan region (2010  population: 1 million), where it is spoken. Often regarded as a single language, Taishanese can also be seen as a group of very closely related, mutually intelligible sub-dialects spoken in the various towns and villages in and around Siyi (the four counties of Taishan, Enping, Kaiping, Xinhui). Taishanese is closely related to and classified as a dialect of Cantonese although they are mutually unintelligible in general.

A vast number of Taishanese immigrants journeyed worldwide through the Taishan Diaspora. The Taishan region was a major source of Chinese immigrants in the Americas from the mid-19th and late-20th centuries. Today, the total population of Taishan origin live outside of China is estimated to be approximately 1.3 million with about 420,000 in the United States alone. Prior to the signing of the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965, which allowed new waves of Chinese immigrants, Taishanese was the dominant dialect spoken in Chinatowns across North America.

Taishanese is still spoken in many Chinatowns, including those of San Francisco and New York, by older generations of Chinese immigrants and their children.

Apart from North America, other favorite destinations of Taishanese immigrants include the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Brazil, Australia, and Cuba. Taishanese immigrants can be found in over 100 countries all around the world.