 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The" G( R) i7 ~7 T. W, f$ D
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
$ ?3 |; b6 q6 J& Csyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
1 H$ N9 K- M, t/ Hand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
3 e# p; T3 g& I: g(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of1 F2 k( F7 F9 s' i f. c
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
; q! [: l- h7 f# S: OA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
. `- _# e3 J6 l* B2 i$ s[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]1 m* |- m. `9 h A
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
6 Z% s6 \5 C, l# iretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
- m9 n. k- U$ H9 v( |3 k# Ppossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
% E; n5 T! { M: f+ I8 m(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two% B, i' y! X1 e( _0 s2 G
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
# u* O- i1 j* isemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.$ ?# ]: [: [9 W4 Y
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In& q/ J! y8 Q/ Z, }) H
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,( H+ S* @5 A& t' h: ^' Q
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
/ \4 r( b k' @7 V3 F
' H- `0 v" w5 ?8 N2 G! s(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch) I* ?4 y. h; a
and American speakers of English, |
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