 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The$ ?6 c6 m1 M! @+ `. g* x5 }) v/ Y) u
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the# k% t& A- T/ P# X
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,$ y9 k* Z# S% u+ C/ ?
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
# S G1 `7 Z2 K2 A* K(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of* m5 E& R7 y' q6 q5 g
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
- I/ _% |5 B" }) M( jA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=9 k% ~/ C9 J4 c7 g: w& R
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]" q; z$ c# R, z9 i$ W6 S$ q
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving$ D% F2 I( T0 [
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on- b6 |2 |8 e/ y" V+ j5 l
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
+ g8 b4 |9 l U(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
, W" R0 h3 ~* [% N$ w5 jsegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a& B* Q2 p4 E( ?
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.$ q8 w4 C( |2 Q4 b
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
: W, G6 _+ M% w( l0 p1 Mcompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
d" v- q3 D7 V- c; h6 \% k7 u: Qthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..; a4 G: A$ _' i1 m
& X0 d2 \3 q' u8 i, R$ i+ |' Y
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)" N! s+ m7 w4 T5 [0 z4 Z
and American speakers of English, |
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