 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
( E/ W/ p3 W& f' ~5 A! B; Q3 TInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the3 f0 n, W0 T: x- Y7 v) x; R& f# O& V k
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
, e1 _& x7 @, r" E4 g4 ~* g/ Hand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial" t" D: Z# B W, K* ] i$ ^& M: Y: o0 N
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of$ y' V$ U: G" _* |( ?4 g
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).4 V1 _+ {! }. b9 ^
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
. U& k8 Z+ Q3 x[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
}. Y7 r+ ^. q( d3 ?% w9 N+ j(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
$ p; ?" W+ v" j. v0 Rretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on+ m% z. H% Z; l6 K' t+ L
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
; e9 U; s$ }6 n4 r' ~% `. d(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two- _! ]7 c+ O3 `5 d- y9 l% C
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a8 H0 a2 g4 n% X$ A; @) _
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.* D4 S6 |1 P+ f0 [: R" s
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In: {: e+ t. F! \% N; I% F3 F
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
9 A: h& Y9 i x. I. e: J* qthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla../ h3 m' L7 W: `( v6 U |/ X
2 e+ I0 i; j, U$ ^3 b
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)+ ~, o0 R; J; C! g4 e
and American speakers of English, |
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