 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
8 L: Z# v4 T% Y, X3 sInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the1 ?4 Y8 q) V! b" k. ?8 V4 c- D
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
z, o h' f1 y8 X }* Xand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
8 d8 e5 J. S" S: Q2 ^" @(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
+ q4 K( }6 [+ n6 M7 \; p |+ @- `retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).; R* }/ {5 u) P( M5 k) o1 s
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=# A- j6 v, a* k! V0 h- ?
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]- h: I' @ N* M4 B
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving2 m$ F9 H% z: N" i
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on) Q) |! c# o- u k
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
& e1 S1 e* h4 A1 H! K(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two7 I+ Q0 W( P, g" j
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
. a: t; j5 y" O& Jsemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.+ t" a! C( Z0 [
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
$ _. `' L6 } ]/ A4 ~# `! Z( Lcompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
1 Y6 g1 _! O' Kthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..0 D% e) h1 ~- b( Q+ J* J
4 v$ ]+ V& _) O6 o' `; d9 k
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch) d6 Y2 B+ z- P2 n/ V7 B6 B3 m
and American speakers of English, |
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