 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
% [! v& ?+ ]$ d. H6 `Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the* U/ i9 B# z# n2 {2 w( _; o; g
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in, X7 o! q- A+ S6 D6 ?2 |) I
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
8 h6 f0 ~. H- p- t0 @( e(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
& R1 d$ ?8 z3 D* Y8 Oretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).+ J" ~8 Q0 N2 {' z0 b% |
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=# K3 K( s; D+ h
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]6 g& Y7 U" }+ \' b- E7 Z) j
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving5 Z8 K0 g' e& g0 i
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on' ^# J/ M. _1 [% `: D. ~6 I
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset; |6 g; J3 N+ E
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two; a# u$ w8 P3 N2 |% S0 ~; H
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
: e8 d3 C$ Q, V4 s! P) M# bsemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.1 u3 h$ a1 c' D, F3 e3 J
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In7 w) n5 ?# m" e9 b! k. \* x" k3 i8 n
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,% ~& i- n1 y; o2 D `) Q2 A
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..7 T/ `' k: C$ K7 J4 Z g4 w
E( u4 ^" f( f) f$ }9 y, F(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
3 v! S" g, @: C. t. B, Y/ jand American speakers of English, |
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