 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
* |- W! e" q$ _1 D2 V) h+ RInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the1 t) g" i0 @% o
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
q0 M1 p$ D8 C: m# H- |- x; jand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
4 h3 V R7 [+ Y3 T8 U(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
' [) L9 l3 n3 g. R; aretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
# G' e9 B2 V0 Y2 k" x5 }A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=+ m" y9 m G( u: j t
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
2 M7 C& b' T1 z5 z0 |8 \, H/ y(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
+ r) j/ ]) y& {/ u0 C/ fretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
: K* m6 T, g3 P2 y- v( b7 hpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset h' R5 M: {7 t: N9 F2 d
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
& P8 b; ]" B6 z. h# n8 [% m- I+ v ^segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a3 ~8 `# V0 d: Y, z$ Y* P
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
9 m( W: L; n. Z$ K9 wend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
. H1 ^1 `6 ~& _1 C3 vcompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,: b+ T8 R9 A3 f0 Y, o0 @
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..* B+ ]8 [$ p9 G% n. i! M# d) e
: v' I( K3 ^/ U1 i2 O/ O
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch) |, M! `: f% N- i7 @9 d
and American speakers of English, |
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