 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
8 x1 ^7 t( ]$ R8 fInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
: N! r( {- L) t2 n9 [! ?6 {1 g/ gsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,7 i) Z' D9 u0 y7 ^ y* m
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
z; {2 \: u. W* x' H: r1 L(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
$ }7 U* }! q- s0 j+ L. [retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
" o% W/ P( M4 u. B7 H1 z* hA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
" F' j8 U* o1 }! N4 `5 j) c: ?[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
- u# [, C8 Z. p5 t% L; t(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
! b# o2 D! D, u+ v" pretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
0 r) ]: J6 g' o4 k% b- ^6 J$ \possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset* ?5 B, G0 X* y. T5 Y: z
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two& `( R2 C2 T( c# O2 l" D, F6 m
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a. h" d5 G& A/ m* c7 o6 O2 @. X
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.% [4 _( r1 @7 V3 A X% t b# [
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In$ B2 I& A1 X# D9 k, C
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
9 J l& Q8 T6 ], @ ~# {* g. Tthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
& S0 X9 U2 |, t) X5 t. D# h) V. _
$ K& S% {: X# X! v& [* n6 X7 ^3 C(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)2 b! R; {* E' o+ l& q0 _5 M/ y
and American speakers of English, |
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