 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
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Traditional Chinese phonology divides the syllable into an Initial and Final. The
8 i1 X1 [( g6 I+ ]) EInitial is the way a syllable begins, usually with a consonant. The Final is the2 |( ^8 d# R2 J$ N: [; S
syllable minus the Initial. For example, in ta, chi, jin, chuang, the Finals are a, i, in,8 h1 M8 n' }- K9 u) H' x# `1 c5 x0 u
and uang, respectively. The longest form of a Final consists of three parts: a medial& ~; h' M4 s ]4 h3 c
(or: semivowel), a main vowel (or: head vowel), and an ending (or, in the case of
, [, L7 U8 B# \- L6 s7 Mretroflex suffixes, sometimes two endings, as in the er-sound ming’er ‘tomorrow’).1 c [) f" r5 n3 W$ {, _1 |
A Final in Mandarin comprises one of four medials: º (empty), /i/, /u/, or /iu/ (=
& s7 ?9 _% w. k0 F$ K* I[y], one of three vowels: /a/, /e/, or /o/, and one of six endings: º, -i, -u, -n, -N, and [”]
/ s* j+ K9 e' p Z: R7 l8 G(phonetically -r).13 Actually, there are only 40 different Finals (if Finals involving2 R, Z& W7 Q) Q" r" w2 z
retroflex suffixes are not counted). As a result of these very severe restrictions on
2 i- o% h8 d) {$ I; U# Gpossible syllables in Mandarin, no obstruent clusters are possible in the onset: a) V( L/ n" [9 O& _7 t- I* v
(Initial) nor in the coda (Final). Onset clusters can maximally have a length of two
8 e4 `! u7 t2 p" O* b0 I" Y" M7 vsegments, in which case the consonant closest to the vocalic nucleus must be a" I$ L; a: J% s
semivowel. Coda clusters are disallowed; in fact, syllables are generally open, i.e.7 Z: c6 a" V7 V5 m
end with a vowel. The only possible coda consonants are the nasals /n/ and /N/. In
8 D1 ]4 d' V" Q5 Wcompound vowels with /a, e, o/ as the first segment and /i, u/ as the second element,: e! k% k& u$ j4 k( p8 ~7 C! e
the latter are phonetically realised as semivowels, creating a diphthong. .. bla...bla... bla..( |4 h; W! A3 \, ^$ u
# W: a0 ?! M* m(source: Wang Hongyan, year unkown, English as a lingua franca:Mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch)6 b9 j3 \& [# n5 S& C
and American speakers of English, |
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