9

I notice that the pinyin "h" is in many books just the same as in English.

But when I listen to people, some people stress the "h" and there is a tiny gggg, and some gurgling sometimes (hope this is the right word, my native tongue is not English).

My question is, is this how it should sound, a pretty pronounced H sound or is it a dialect that I shouldn't pick up and should my H be really clean?

Glorfindel
  • 444
  • 1
  • 5
  • 17
Kiyori
  • 91
  • 1
  • 3

1 Answers1

7

In standard Mandarin, the pinyin h is pronounced as [x] in IPA, like ch in Scottish English loch -- yes, you're right that there's a tiny g, because [x] is a velar consonant. However, in south China, many simply say [h], although some natural assimilation may happen. For instance, for those speakers, pinyin ha is [ha] while pinyin he becomes [xɤ] (if you get [ɤ] right, then [hɤ] simply doesn't work, you would do [xɤ] unconsciously). Therefore [h] and [x] are allophones in this sense, so don't worry about your pronunciation.

user58955
  • 2,119
  • 1
  • 16
  • 15
  • Hi! Would you say the [x] or [h] pronunciation is more common in standard Mandarin? Or is it either/or? – Lou Aug 23 '16 at 00:32
  • [x] is more common in northern China and it is the standard pronunciation. As I explained, in south China, it is common to switch between [h] and [x] depending on the following vowel. – user58955 Aug 23 '16 at 01:05
  • Dang I just wasted a bunch of time trying to pronounce [hɤ]. –  Feb 25 '21 at 16:51