 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
9 _3 I& C3 G7 [1 x2 }% nInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the2 U5 K& C+ B: W- A( K6 m
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
- x+ Y- F5 V* M; @and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
7 ^1 V0 Y+ C8 C" B& E+ U; n(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
$ U. {) ` `0 G" pretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
Q/ H& n0 [. I: l7 gA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=' T# b, M7 d3 Y
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
! F% y- w7 l& S: g; G, x% ] r(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
1 M. s$ M& b' _+ v. }retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
) n) U, ~5 x, Ypossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
6 E$ p. Q: H) \6 T0 C8 A3 ]; P(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two$ U) \" U$ b& D2 y
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a8 U7 e8 W F L
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
6 c1 S% Z) X# i4 `end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In& y# P, R$ ^, r% s. J
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
+ \( b3 C! p6 V. B" \. tthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..* C# k0 a1 X0 {9 U) X ]
. @* \. o _8 A8 r! r$ I$ R/ T
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)' ?; X7 C" q7 `
and American speakers of English, |
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