 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
* Z$ @) _" u4 X! C. b" s* r# s3 XInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the6 d% \- O+ _% L0 f* S7 [) ?% y
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in, W' s9 ~& r/ |+ ?; W
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial4 \! v. L: T9 r* k. H
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of3 @! G* m2 u! f& \) ]" h0 T
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’)." V* `, m+ k3 ~2 u/ d
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
% ?* c' m7 }' |; l[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
2 Z( N! z) t; ?; p1 U% S(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving1 W! U. p( c- v6 j" l
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on6 I4 v; ?7 `" p1 Q$ ?% Z. {
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
$ l) [6 s. k" Y5 y/ d(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
$ [+ q5 _9 E( ?% K1 jsegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
: q+ s; F+ f/ n m4 Isemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
% s8 _1 f/ H- F( D9 w, uend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
; t. V5 k! `" P# c4 o. tcompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
! t+ h0 u( i! n+ p( S2 q Cthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
4 A/ o. i' C; @9 t0 T" ?! E9 C9 f* j7 G3 r9 _. M( @' r
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
+ A& y; X. [7 l, O% d1 dand American speakers of English, |
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