 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The$ Z7 f5 ~( M! a6 s5 n; r
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the# A2 v8 j+ h2 l* ]3 A
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
( e( Y. ^/ H; X7 f9 Hand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
: [" S( z$ @/ |5 R0 {(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of2 X; g7 I6 a/ N6 S
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
0 R. B6 h# n# P! N$ T0 b& G# KA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
# u1 @: m3 w0 w2 V. ~5 h# W, d[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]! a4 w' _8 s8 ]3 C2 H6 g1 Z
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
3 x) U4 v: B6 j, }) c0 A# e. Iretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
, ]0 d r$ M6 z; u8 P5 a# Dpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
: x0 E* G& L! N( l+ q R4 b; r- `(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two0 e& S! R- Z# @0 L, l! [
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a: J1 a" W0 U# R% w- o
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
+ S2 ]4 B. F8 B9 Fend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In' g" J) _: h1 U6 L0 n! x
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,1 P& o, y1 a4 Q* W/ u
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..6 [" V: I6 T0 U. e: m* o
5 I8 Y k7 z; g! r5 _- b- _
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
( W: b4 a: p0 P8 i, f U6 X/ e0 U( band American speakers of English, |
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