 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The Z" f* `: t0 x+ w9 _
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the2 ^" ?2 s) y4 [2 _2 O9 p( C3 G
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
+ ^4 R: }& j* `' j# r" [9 Uand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
. t# C4 l# a$ j; N/ F+ S' \(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of7 G" N8 v/ x4 s0 U
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
7 ?4 b( u/ U: j4 P+ ` k& mA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=8 r) k" d9 J* w2 H% F: l
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]1 e& Q) Q9 { k- S4 X3 Z
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving# A, x, p$ e2 M4 [1 m" `- Z
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
' V2 X, z G$ A# Q/ G, F% tpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
6 V9 O, P7 W8 i6 I7 k(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
! B2 H9 J( B2 k" zsegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
: D0 k3 h. D# ]semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
* t& a6 O2 Y3 h5 p0 k1 j: eend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
! @$ L2 E+ ]/ \! z* @compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
7 P/ m, [& N0 z! R, nthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
: [# e1 F. Y8 \
! n% ]7 m1 F* l* G(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
1 e( a; \5 ^( W9 G1 o# qand American speakers of English, |
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