 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
% b3 |0 d( m0 [, aInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the/ N& E0 _ W0 I* T
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,
- `8 s* i8 _* cand uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial3 v/ s9 N/ E( d! w5 h
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of% ]# r, R, t8 O0 K: K1 w) Z
retroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).
0 i: G" Z D0 K4 FA Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
5 Q% Y1 |+ U" w% J! U( b M[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]0 s( ~# b7 S/ f- b
(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving
# [+ j. b) x$ z7 I# R' [& Pretroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on$ E: F3 T8 p' K
possible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset
/ v- c5 K( {+ ^+ X! X C& E% W(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
* \3 {( H& Q% ] a- Q0 I8 z0 _segments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a! e0 M' f- k9 g9 B8 l2 ]7 o; d
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.
! g- k( U" V, v' tend with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In4 q( Y3 O1 l+ N% _3 T/ c* c4 }. a
compound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,
0 P/ V4 N4 J& z b* J% Xthe latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..+ I7 k# |- ^. a m0 _& A
' P- k$ @% V7 F
(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)* I3 x n9 O. O
and American speakers of English, |
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