 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The4 y( Y7 Z% D+ s
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the5 K+ f1 C2 S& _% u
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
) ~& {) h) k0 q# d& ^- cand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
( H2 Q0 e3 r+ `(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
* V$ I9 B& M1 _: Q( _retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).- B! u. s Z( z( n# C( s5 x( l
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
% V: {. j1 f9 h; Y6 L$ t" \[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
% n5 x3 R+ d) {1 W9 z(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
5 A% z# O! I& @; v" I$ H( Cretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on/ X- _( ^/ n) B, D6 B( K' B
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset3 t* G# r: E8 u" B
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
/ @- V! R" F9 H6 }* }segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
; n3 \5 }& q: ^$ zsemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.$ S" z3 b" O5 X. P; r
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
6 P3 h" N5 A" A. x6 e; k: Icompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
7 v- r8 c9 G; Y6 e: ?the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..3 b$ s, M; p4 `7 \) R0 M6 [5 c3 t
C! g3 i& ]3 Z
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)6 e4 i0 y% l3 u: b* M/ @! K
and American speakers of English, |
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