 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
3 H6 }' G( ]3 f8 i9 XInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
Z/ a' w# c/ L& rsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,2 Y) Q, j% @ k% X
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
6 c' Y8 H" a- L# |0 D(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
/ ~4 y" {4 d! lretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).- H7 @6 U O( y! |0 I* S
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
- Z, @/ {0 m4 }) V* j* M[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
& r3 o9 r1 E( w, h# y \6 X+ o(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving/ y5 \, l, W# G9 U2 {7 ~ w
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
* ^% v# V# G# fpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
0 d$ p& o' u4 `( f: }(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
% |6 K4 K% E w! Q' psegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a7 H- p$ R; v- v7 n
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
6 g3 f6 `8 ~/ d' fend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In# Q7 t* [. t* p5 t7 x
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
: O+ `- r4 D$ W+ B- P1 \the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
7 p* [& j9 I, E( }/ J/ {
]( c( O) F8 _1 {7 \(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)2 L# M# i+ l% C
and American speakers of English, |
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