 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
8 \# `9 R$ X. T# SInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the
4 K; ] g: A+ c, T* Gsyllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
8 ~5 T( ?$ d" G, x \! k+ Yand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial
# C/ E9 J7 ^3 s8 P8 f" `, d(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of* d! e% m s" L
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).4 P- t# [$ i9 t8 O# h
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
! b* u2 F! _( a6 b# G3 o$ E; m[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
! t5 P: P L- N2 Y(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving& R% X7 [: q* \4 h
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
/ r: p5 \9 H) z a: Cpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
' \" M/ [( y1 \) P; ~/ i8 I(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
+ M+ y2 m* _: W% y$ lsegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a
, W5 u7 ]; S5 Z: P/ T" Isemivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
* C& [# p1 Z# A2 ]) m* _. _end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In) {9 B( j3 p6 q9 @* Q
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,' t; P. k' o2 M) n0 ~ B M
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..9 B: K: w; j' q% K
4 s& w$ G) K+ z, D/ B, m(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)! n1 Y7 }' X* L( s5 p! Q
and American speakers of English, |
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