Editing Syllable (section)

=== <span class="anchor" id="initial"></span><span class="anchor" id="medial"></span><span class="anchor" id="final"></span><span class="anchor" id="rime"></span><span class="anchor" id="Chinese"></span>Chinese segmentation ===
{{see also|Fanqie}}
[[Image:Chinese syllable tree.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|Traditional Chinese syllable structure]]

In the syllable structure of [[Sinitic languages]], the onset is replaced with an initial, and a semivowel or liquid forms another segment, called the medial. These four segments are grouped into two slightly different components:{{example needed |date=September 2017}}<!-- Example needed, like the examples of "cat" and "sing". -->

*[[#initial|Initial]] {{angbr|ι}}: Optional onset, excluding semivowels
* [[#final|Final]] {{angbr|φ}}: Medial, nucleus, and final consonant<ref>More generally, the letter φ indicates a prosodic [[foot (prosody)|foot]] of two syllables</ref>
** [[#medial|Medial]] {{angbr|μ}}: Optional semivowel or liquid<ref>More generally, the letter μ indicates a [[mora (linguistics)|mora]]</ref>
** [[#Nucleus|Nucleus]] {{angbr|ν}}: A [[vowel]] or syllabic consonant
** [[#Coda|Coda]] {{angbr|κ}}: Optional final consonant
* [[Tone (linguistics)|Tone]] {{angbr|τ}}: May be carried by the syllable as a whole or by the rime

In many languages of the [[Mainland Southeast Asia linguistic area]], such as [[Chinese language|Chinese]], the syllable structure is expanded to include an additional, optional '''medial''' segment  located between the onset (often termed the ''initial'' in this context) and the rime. The medial is normally a [[semivowel]], but [[reconstructions of Old Chinese]] generally include [[liquid consonant|liquid]] medials ({{IPA|/r/}} in modern reconstructions, {{IPA|/l/}} in older versions), and many reconstructions of [[Middle Chinese]] include a medial contrast between {{IPA|/i/}} and {{IPA|/j/}}, where the {{IPA|/i/}} functions phonologically as a glide rather than as part of the nucleus. In addition, many reconstructions of both Old and Middle Chinese include complex medials such as {{IPA|/rj/}}, {{IPA|/ji/}}, {{IPA|/jw/}} and {{IPA|/jwi/}}. The medial groups phonologically with the rime rather than the onset, and the combination of medial and rime is collectively known as the '''final'''.

Some linguists, especially when discussing the modern Chinese varieties, use the terms "final" and "rime" interchangeably. In [[historical Chinese phonology]], however, the distinction between "final" (including the medial) and "rime" (not including the medial) is important in understanding the [[rime dictionaries]] and [[rime table]]s that form the primary sources for [[Middle Chinese]], and as a result most authors distinguish the two according to the above definition.