 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
% V/ y5 r& B( ~' pInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
, P4 q4 [1 l" w( O; B; X* |syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
H( | E( a: @6 j& \8 X' Gand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial( X) |" Y: }( G4 c! z
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
- S. L. s, S2 Y4 j0 @8 X* U- ~retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).4 t! n! Y' B1 m5 E- _ B& Z$ i
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=8 I; C) Y9 |; v5 t0 g( o- b [( m
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]" k9 D' H& W V/ c4 k2 N
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
: D$ m+ B& D' F) `/ fretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
$ c8 u1 g) A5 y4 S- d7 k! gpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
6 x/ W* d: V4 c7 N8 I6 P; W0 g(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
) f; R( x; Q/ A$ }segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
* S, I" S' G! |) n5 [. E4 |semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
; ~+ L7 L4 H+ Q1 i' xend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In* P! A% F5 G+ e
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
; v2 i9 }* v* K5 T, X* @. ~# Cthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..- @ k6 V0 }' [3 R" o. P# | Q+ [. |
- l" v- z0 f5 @# _* ~) c
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)% C& y. I8 k: x1 X4 p! N1 N
and American speakers of English, |
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