A Study Of The Difference Of Pronunciation Between Mainland China And Taiwan

The intent of this paper is to analyze the the differences between Taiwan and Beijing Mandarin.Even though the differences are not problems for communication between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait,they will lead to misunderstanding sometimes.By more interaction across the Strait,many scholars did more research on the distinction of vocabulary than pronunciation.In this thesis,I point out the differences in pronunciation between the two sides of the Strait and the reasons,basing on the comprehensive comparison between "Xi(?)nD(?)i H(?)nY(?)C(?)Di(?)n"《现代汉语词典》published in Beijing and "X(?)nBi(?)n Gu(?)Y(?)R(?)B(?)o C(?)Di(?)n"《新编国语日报辞典》in Taipei.Meanwhile,I also refer to "Gu(?)Y(?)n Ch(?)ngY(?)ng ZiHu(?)"《国音常用字汇》in 1927,and "Gu(?)ngY(?)n"《广韵》in the 11th century.Three conclusions can be drawn from my study:First,there are 1,080 words which are the same in word form but differ in pronunciation among the nearby 9,000 words which are studied.Most of the differences in pronunciation across the Strait are in tone.Furthermore, there are less than 50 monosyllabic words which are really different between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and usually used.So,they don' t impede communication.And the third is, according to the longitudinal study,half of the words in "Xi(?)nD(?)i H(?)n Y(?) C(?)Di(?)n" have are the same with those in "Gu(?)ngY(?)n",and these words also are not usually used. Therefore,the generally accepted idea that more emphasis is put on modern pronunciation in Mainland but more is put on traditional one in Taiwan is only suitable for the characters commonly used in daily life.