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3 questions
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2
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Mandarin Chinese phonology: on the issue of p/b, t/d, k/g distinction and older romanization systems
Like many people, I've found it intriguing that older Chinese romanization systems such as Wade-Giles and postal romanization seem to "confuse" certain sounds, such as p/b, k/g, and t/d. I ...
11
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2
answers
4k
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Does Mandarin Chinese have phonetically voiced plosives, fricatives, or affricates (besides "r" = [ʐ] / [ɻ])?
The various Wikipedia articles covering Standard Chinese all seem to agree that Mandarin does not have voiced plosives, fricatives, or affricates except for [ʐ] / [ɻ], written in Pinyin as "r".
But ...
17
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4
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8k
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How do tones work in music sung in tonal languages, such as Cantonese or Mandarin Chinese?
I have not yet studied tonal languages, so it might be understandable, but when I listen to Chinese music, for example, I'm unable to perceive tones. This makes me think they are partially or ...