 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
5 a7 w7 j. x1 _, Q, d0 O) O* w4 uInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
% v: {7 o0 u1 a* d4 I2 X# W3 jsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
4 x/ ~* P2 k* ]- e* ]" cand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial; ^6 {# @# m1 g* A7 n5 {8 W/ i) l. X
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of+ X7 p8 v4 _* a* [ R5 A" Z
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).- X$ ?$ n- s5 m" I$ x
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
5 u( J. Q4 A0 ?4 l% D[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]# @* \. A% @/ s1 w s' f! P" y
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
3 v9 p m+ q6 k) jretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on5 [9 M; w {2 C
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
V4 g5 K1 @, K2 V(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two7 B3 F' F9 m+ \4 C2 n+ {
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
# Q: y! I9 r! ?: i/ d4 Esemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
' x/ Y' c0 Z9 w" Xend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In' O: c6 G7 N7 }+ a
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,! B) ^$ q5 {. @" x
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
' l2 D" u. ?4 E* S) s2 I, h+ e% J3 ? ~4 \, e J' `9 z, f- ~$ r
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
6 v# r* g5 t) @and American speakers of English, |
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