 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The8 t* i1 r. U( G+ I
Initial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
/ W, c5 j( [5 Z1 M% d {% n, wsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,' _1 H2 ^2 r/ x
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial& N* z3 P- a# v9 S
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
9 z$ D3 e8 P S' W( yretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).* o1 H/ \& I. C" e$ m
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=4 F: ~7 Q0 v8 J) X; U+ c8 K
[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
W( ~9 y, H# k6 n/ ^(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving. ?! X" p) v5 t* p% J
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on- Z/ x8 b7 H( Q$ E; y
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset" B1 m* E8 W" P. N6 w+ v/ K
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two W" j0 E$ E+ P
segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
+ ~* c. V! |' _semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
3 {- l/ N, s* D {end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In2 f& z D7 \2 F3 j- j
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
! f9 N) i7 P+ J6 m) lthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..
$ x# {- [8 g' i- E8 t# Z/ ~* v3 y0 |, q) j
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)
' Q7 ~ o9 |* `and American speakers of English, |
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