Chinese Pinyin
Course overview
Alphabet (字母表)
Lessons: 0 Time: 10 minutes
Pinyin, the phonological system of mandarin Chinese, is represented by letters as in the English alphabet. Letter 'v' is not used; letter 'ü' is added as a vowel letter instead.
Initials (声母表)
Lessons: 8 Time: 30 minutes
Twenty consonant letters of the English alphabet are use as initials in mandarin Chinese, with the exception of the letter 'V'.
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Finals (韵母表)
Lessons: 9 Time: 30 minutes
There are 6 vowel letters that represent individual vowels in pinyin.
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Tones (声调)
Lessons: 0 Time: 20 minutes
There are four full tones and one neutral tone in pinyin. The naming is simple: the 1st tone, the 2nd tone, the 3rd tone and the 4th tone.
Syllables (音节)
Lessons: 0 Time: 30 minutes
A syllable in pinyin is composed of three parts: an initial, a final and the tone.
Course information
HSK level: 1
Date published: 2007-7-22
Description:
Nana is here to guide you through Mandarin Chinese phonetics. You should be able to read any Chinese character using the corresponding pinyin after taking this course.
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What I find most fascinating about learning Chinese is that it's not just a standalone language, but rather an entirely new way of thinking. On top of that, learning Chinese has enabled me to converse with the people from the fastest growing and most populous country in the world. I feel that choosing to study Chinese has been the most practical and rewarding experience I've ever undertaken.
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