 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The$ k& H6 J4 K1 D; E4 J
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the0 f8 l9 E O" g
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,! E# ~. j/ x0 [; ?( X
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial4 m$ g" ^' J1 l. N2 Z: ?
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
9 `% f& f& O5 ?( R7 z9 ]retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
0 P% L0 O$ s- C4 {A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
, |7 T( D9 h$ ]7 T0 Q- L5 D2 m[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
/ J0 _- x0 _, X5 Q(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
% X G5 `0 u8 q) w% f$ oretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on2 s0 g& V1 {/ f1 A- r, Z
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
. x) t" ^. O) \. v$ ^( W# N P(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
1 g0 I# y9 y' B. w6 l) ssegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a3 m* B3 Z) g& ^: J9 Q0 b
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.. j0 }% u* A1 W- F0 H* N& \
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
9 I+ d! x `# `- n3 l4 G8 hcompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
; r# f: A- g2 j7 ^; Wthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
& U, r9 c5 ?( H: O, W# Z' j* g6 k3 {, k/ l) }3 n5 n. T0 g+ r% H
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
0 ~, G5 {5 E$ T) r3 [& H/ Iand American speakers of English, |
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