 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
# i5 y) N3 O+ e2 o/ a* `) L5 XInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
6 H, [, c" C( ?+ Hsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
7 @; a! D* A8 w1 d# B7 x! X# rand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial" T+ ^' Y! t" U/ F2 y+ g1 k4 b
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
$ P. }1 ? A5 L' l, Mretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).6 Z+ M8 J6 N2 ]0 o
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
7 s' V3 i4 F5 j4 ]9 L[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
* _* ]' b; s* ^(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
) C5 q% J: C7 k' G& N+ ~1 G5 Xretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on- I3 x4 U* i' p, v N6 [# @5 I
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset8 S4 G% G# O5 n' @6 f: C9 m
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two! ~. g8 W: y4 d
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a" d" l5 Z8 i. R, A) y! }
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.9 A+ R6 u# _# j; R! Y! j8 c6 i
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In5 p5 \: @4 U6 p
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
3 Z u Q0 h6 Wthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..5 j' g' ?6 C! B* W1 p+ n
* X1 C) X+ _+ q3 r ?1 Y# ]" E
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
: k! \5 y, D) q+ Q% d1 m( p% Hand American speakers of English, |
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