 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The4 z2 [" q1 ]8 ]- P
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
$ w( i9 z! D8 ]0 U3 S+ Hsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,+ k. d' T, q9 r5 I3 l
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
, G; G1 {; |8 K% }, S(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of4 f- C, Q4 c& w
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).! J1 i1 b7 ]* a! k& a3 W
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
, D" B0 n4 `6 T, f' j' ]! M[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
0 Y, P, w( r& t(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
( o1 [$ [2 |/ e; y! f+ kretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on8 x, m7 k7 O# v5 K
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
' Z6 I0 D: d, ?(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
6 s) ]) k4 _! x! ?segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
4 t* ~7 F. Z' g$ P# w! m6 d3 R: Hsemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.( f4 k b5 e% a: a# i* k
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In/ j: |( A$ V4 b. o8 b
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
* M1 W/ M: R/ k- j# Xthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
& d' Z2 B# g# |4 q$ a' l
- w5 J# b/ y) Q0 @(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
. n2 A. e. C, }9 n, l. Xand American speakers of English, |
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