Proto-Chinese Kanji Character Sample Terms

Free Online Kanji Etymology Dictionary

The mechanics of how terms were devised in proto-Chinese (1100 B.C.E. or earlier)
Sound

Semantic I
(Initial
Consonant)
KUANG Frame

Semantic II
(Final
Consonant)
Extension

KAN

Frame

Adhere

KAM

Frame

Encompass

KAP

Frame

Press

LOK

Continuum

Straight

LANG

Continuum

Extension

LUAN

Continuum

Adhere

LAT

Continuum

Cut

MUANG Conceal

Extension

MOK

Conceal

Straight

MUAR

Conceal

Continuum

MUAT

Conceal

Reduce

NOG

Supple

Straight

NANG

Supple

Extension

NAN

Supple

Adhere

Vowel
Nuance

Character/Etymology

Circle/Mass : person extending a torch

above the head, creating an arc
of light (compare )
: hand adhering to the
forehead in shading the eyes
: sweet taste of food
contained in the mouth
: person pressed by others
from each side
Curve
: land winding far, wide and
high
: cool, clean water flowing
continuously over high ground
Circle/Mass : swarming mass of fish eggs
adhering to each other
: cut bones into segments
and arrange in a row
Circle/Mass : net massed over a wide
area, concealing/obscuring
objects from sight
Curve
: eye covered by a curving
eyelid
Circle/Mass : continuously blazing fire
that consumes (= conceals) its
fuel source while producing an
arc of light (compare )
Circle/Mass : rub an object until it
becomes a tiny, nearly invisible
lump
Curve
: curving, supple ear that
clings straight to the side of the
head
/: soft, mixed earth spread
over a field soil
: blade, a flexible implement
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NAT

Supple

Reduce

PAG

Spread

Straight

PANG

Spread

Extension

PUAM

Spread

Encompass

PUAR

Spread

Continuum

SAG

Small; Thin;
Slender
Small; Thin;
Slender
Small; Thin;
Slender

Straight

Cut

TOG

Small; Thin;
Slender
Straight

TAN

Straight

Adhere

TAP

Straight

Press

TER

Straight

Continuum

SUAN
SAM

SAT

Adhere
Encompass

Straight

pounded (= adhered to) by a

hammer in the smithing
process
: burn heat; hot (reduce
objects in size and make them
supple/flexible through
burning)
: cloth spread flat out
: waterweed spreading at
length over the surface of a
pool of water
Circle/Mass : dog breaking out of its
circular enclosure and running
off
Circle/Mass : mass of waves spreading
continuously over the surface
of the ocean
: (thin) dam running straight
across a river
Circle/Mass /: hands encircled about a
slender container of alcohol
/: slender hairpins
encompassed within a woman's
coiffure
: scrape ears of millet to
obtain their tiny seeds
Curve
: bird with a long, curving
tail
: sit on an object and flatten
it with the weight of the body
/: pile/fold an object to a
number of layers
: cord/vine wrapped about a
stake, running from top to
bottom

Chinese Kanji Etymology Reference Terms

Free Online Kanji Etymology Dictionary

S/B: Shell and Bone Characters

The earliest forms of the characters are those carved into shells and bones (chia ku wen:
; in Japan, more commonly known as ) and those (jin wen: ) inscribed
into tripod kettles, tools, weapons, musical instruments and other objects made of bronze.

The shells and bones were used in divination rites during the Shang Dynasty (1600-1066
B.C.E.). Heat was applied to induce cracks in the shells and bones, and fortunes were cast
based on the patterns of the cracks. Afterwards, details concerning the provenance of the
shells and bones, the diviner, the question posed for divination and the interpretation made
were inscribed with bronze knives or the edges of hard jewels, creating characters thin and
angular in form.
It is worth noting that fully 5,000 distinct characters, some of a high degree of
morphological development, have been identified among the shell and bone characters. This
suggests that the characters will ultimately be found to date much further back than can be
confirmed at present.

BIS: Bronzeware Inscription Style

The bronzeware characters, which record legal affairs, proclamations, or the performance of
sacred rituals, commemorate achievements and so on, these feature bolder lines and are
more highly ornamented than the shell and bone characters. The forms of the characters
remained fairly static during the first centuries of the Zhou Dynasty (1066-256 B.C.), but by
the time of the Warring States period (475-221 B.C.), the collapse of central authority had
created a profusion of variant styles.

SIS: Seal Inscription Style

Shi huang di (), founder of the Qin Dynasty (which can be dated from either 246 or
221 B.C. - 206 B.C.), made a priority of rationalizing the writing system. He favored hsiao
chuan (), a curvy style used in carving seals.

SCR: Scribal Form

During the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.E - C.E. 225, excepting an interregnum from C.E. 8 C.E. 25), a more angular style with clean, straight lines came to be preferred by scribes who
spent their lives writing documents. Known as k' ai shu (), this is the style that serves as
the model for the printed characters used today.

ARC: Archaic Style

A general term for a variety of pre-Scribal Form styles.

Types of Characters
The Shuowen Jiezi (), a famous character dictionary compiled 100 C.E. by Xu
Shen (), identifies six types of characters. However, two of these six types have to do
with the usage rather than compositional structure. The types with which we concern
3

ourselves are pictographs (Chinese: ; Japanese ), ideographs (Chinese:

; Japanese: ) and compound characters, the last group of which are
traditionally considered to be of two varieties: semantic compounds (Chinese: ;
Japanese: ) and phonetic compounds (Chinese: ; Japanese: ).
Of the tens of thousands of characters, pictographs number in the mere hundreds, but as
elements in compounds they are of the greatest importance. Examples of frequently used
pictographs include sword, mouth, woman, mountain, heart, hand,
sun/day, moon, tree, water, fire, field, eye, stone, bamboo,
insect/creature, leg, vehicle, gate, rain/natural phenomena, horse, fish, and
bird.
Ideographs are representations of abstract concepts rather than pictographs of objects. They
are few in number, but include key characters as under/below and over/above, as well
as one, two, three, five, seven, eight, and ten.
Compound characters are composed of two (rarely more) elements. The first element is a
"radical" (or "classifier"). The second element normally suggests both the pronunciation and
the meaning of the character, resulting in a phonetic compound. (See the phonetic elements
section below.)
In semantic compounds the sound conveyed by the second element noted in the preceding
paragraph is anomalous. Examples include , , , , , , and . Semantic
compounds are greatly outnumbered by phonetic compounds, particularly among characters
beyond the most frequently used 2,000 or so. (The opposite is true with respect to characters
devised in Japan, though, where semantic compounds are the rule and phonetic compounds
the exceptions.)
Close inspection reveals that the semantic compound group as traditionally understood
contains many characters which are better understood as phonetic compound characters.
There are four main reasons for this.
1. Relative infrequency in usage of the sound note element.
When particular sound note elements appear over and over they are easily
recognized as indicating a phonetic compound, but when of rare occurence there has
been a tendency to designate the character in which they appear as a semantic
compound. Examples include in , in , in , the right-hand element in
, the right-hand element in , the right-hand element in , the right-hand
element in , the left-hand element in and the top element in . Similar
confusion regarding the sound note is also evident in , , and other characters.
2.
Relative infrequency of a "radical" functioning as a sound note.
The 540 radicals proposed by Xu Shen () in his Shuowen Jiezi (; 100
C.E.) were reduced by 17th and 18th century Chinese lexicographers to 214. It
happens that the sound note for a small number of compound characters is provided
by one of these 214 elements, but partly because such characters are few in number
and partly because insufficient attention has been paid to the sounds of the
characters, the tendency has been for dictionaries to classify these characters as
4

semantic rather than phonetic compounds. Examples include , , , , , ,

and , in which the sound notes are respectively and .
3. Misapprehension caused by slight changes in pronunciation.
The sound note of (ON reading of NEN) is (ON reading of KIN/KON). The
NEN and KIN/KON pair of sounds are rather distinct, but the differences mask the
fact that, etymologically speaking, both and belong to the KAM word family.
4. Loss of a sound note due to orthographic change.
Among the phonetic compounds simplified in Japan's mid-20th century orthographic
reforms were some that lost their traditional sound note. became (losing the
sound note ), turned into (losing ), lost in becoming and so on.
The new forms were then regarded as semantic compounds. Closely related are
characters such as and , officially adopted colloquial forms of more
complicated characters which lost their sound notes in being simplified.
Another point about "semantic compounds" is that the category includes characters that
started out as pictographs, including
. In this case, the designation "semantic compound" has more to do with classifying
the character by present-day shape than it does with etymological origin.
Finally, the present forms of many compound characters, both semantic and phonetic
compounds, contain elements that have been transformed out of recognition. That applies to
such characters, generally designated semantic compounds, as ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
; ; and . Further study may reveal the ancient pronunciation of the bamboo tube
element in and , the pennant/banner element in and , the crouching figures in
and (suggestively, belongs to the PUAG word family, and to the KUAG), the cover
element in and , the pile of objects in , the object run through with string or cord in
, the slender knife in , the arrow-like implement for drawing lines in and so on. It is
likely that not a few of these elements will be found to have been functioning as sound
notes, making the characters phonetic rather than semantic compounds.
Here are several dozen characters often denoted semantic compounds which are much better
understood as phonetic compounds. Click on any or all of them to find out why.


For the record, there is no authoritative compendium of semantic compounds, but
reproduced here or here is the list of basic characters taught to Japanese elementary school
children, with semantic compounds segregated from the other types of characters.
Phonetic compounds account for the vast majority of Chinese characters. Here, one element
in the compound is intended to convey the sound of the character. This element is called the
phonetic element, or sound note. In this dictionary, the phonetic element is denoted by (Type
[#] phonetic).
Phonetic compound characters are of eight types.

Type 1: The phonetic element and the character itself belong to the same word

family. Example: KUAT and KUAT.

Type 2: The phonetic element and the character itself differ in the final consonant.
Example: SAG and SAR.

Type 3: The phonetic element and the character itself differ in the initial consonant.
Example: TAM and KAM.

Type 4: The phonetic element and the character itself differ in the vowel. Examples:
MUAN and MAN; PAR and PUAR; NAG and NUG; SUNG
and SONG; TONG and TUNG.

Type 5: The phonetic element differs from the character itself in two respects, yet is
nevertheless properly regarded as the sound note. Examples: SUAR and
TUAT; NAG and SOG; MAG and PUAG; KUANG and MANG.

Type 6: The phonetic element functions onomatopoeically or mimetically, and not

for its customary meaning. Examples: simulates the sound of a crying baby in ;
simulates the sound of rushing wind in ; simulates a hissing noise in and
so on.

Type 7: The phonetic element transliterates the sound of a term non-Han Chinese in
origin. In this case, the phonetic element may or may not have a secondary, semantic
function. Examples: in ; in ; in and so on.

Type 8: The phonetic element is an abbreviated form of a more complex character.

Examples: in place of in ; in place of in ; in place of in etc.

Consonants and Consonant Networks

The structure of ancient Chinese was extremely simple: an initial consonant (also referred to
simply as an "initial") + a final, the latter composed of a nuclear vowel and a coda
consonant. Sometimes included in the final was a medial glide (I or U).
The initials were K, L, M, N, P, S/TS, and T. Each consonant expressed an identifiable
concept (see below). Word families of terms beginning with the same initial represent
branches and sub-branches of the particular consonant network.
The S/TS consonant network is actually a sub-network of the T group, as we can determine
by comparing word family pairs such as TAM/SAM, TAN/SAN, TAR/SAR and so on. A
careful examination of these pairs reveals that the S/TS terms nearly always represent the
same theme as the corresponding T terms, but with specific reference to objects that are
6

small/thin/slender. Aside from the distinction of smallness, S/TS network terms often
express the idea of irregularity in shape, whereas T network terms are normally concerned
with regularity. In this respect, compare the TAR and SAR word families.
Here are the seven consonant networks, with their primordial concepts and (where
applicable) variant initials.
Initial
K
L
M
N
P
S/TS
T

Variant(s)
G/H
(None)
(None)
(None)
B
DZ
Z

Primordial
Concept(s)
Frame
Continuum
Concealment
Supple
Spread
Small; Thin; Slender
Straight

Vowels
The main vowel in proto-Chinese was short A, or something between short A and short E.
This sound linked the initial and final consonants, and exercised no semantic influence on
terms. Terms with this vowel account for approximately 3/4 of the proto-Chinese
vocabulary.
The other nuclear vowels were O and U; these functioned semantically, with significations
both similar and overlapping. The O vowel suggests CURVATURE, sometimes extending to
CURVE AND SURROUND/ENVELOP. The U vowel, when it is the lone vowel in a term (
KUG/ KUK, SUG/ SUK etc.) refers to a CIRCLE (whether full or nearly full) or to a
bulky/lumpy MASS. However, when the U vowel is employed as part of the diphthong UA (
KUAN/ KUAR/ KUAT, SUAN/ SUAR/ SUAT etc.), the signification is the O vowel sense
of CURVING/ROUND. The reason for using U in the dipthong rather than O was probably
a matter of economy in pronunciation: voicing the sound KOAN distinctly, for example,
demands more effort from the jaw muscles than does the sound KUAN.

Finals
Complementing the seven initials are seven finals. Here they are, with their primordial
concepts and (where applicable) variant forms.
Initial
G
NG
M
N

Variant(s)
K
(None)
(None)
(None)

Primordial
Concept(s)
Straight
Extension
Encompass
Adhere/Be Proximate
7

P
R
T

(None)
(None)
D

Press
Continuum
Cut; Divide; Reduce

Note that the G/K final (STRAIGHT) means "fundamentally straight," not "invariably and
inflexibly straight"; the straightness is subject to modification in the form of curving,
bending and so on. This tendency is particularly evident, as we would expect, in O and U
vowel terms. Also, the straightness is often abstract, in the form of directness or even
semantic neutrality (non-inflection). In the latter case, the function is to spotlight the
semantic signification of the initial, as opposed to nuancing that signification as the other six
finals do.

Consonant Clusters
As shown by the NG final, consonants were sometimes clustered. A small number of initials
demonstrate clustering involving the consonant L. These are KL (as in KLAM and KLAP),
HL (as in HLAG), GL (as in GLOK), and ML (as in MLAK or MLAG). In each initial
cluster, the separate consonants exert their semantic influence on the terms. For example,
KL terms refer both to a frame and to a continuum, ML terms to concealment and a
continuum, and so on.

Word Formation Mechanism

As noted above, the initial conveyed a term's general sense. The presence or absence of a
medial glide adjusted or delimited the range of the term. The final gave the term its specific,
concrete meaning.

Research Background
19th century linguists such as Joseph-Marie Callery (Systema Phoneticum Scripturae
Sinicae: 1841) gave impetus to the scholarly reconstruction of the sounds of ancient
Chinese. In Word Families in Chinese, a landmark article that appeared in the Bulletin of the
Museum of Far East Antiquities in 1934, the Swedish Sinologist Bernhard Karlgren offered
a systematic method for denoting the relations between phonetically close terms.
Later (in [1965] , and [1978]
), University of Tokyo professor Akiyasu Todo augmented Karlgren's work by classifying
word families in Chinese into seven distinct groups, based on the initial consonant by which
Chinese terms were originally pronounced. These seven groups correspond to the initial
consonant networks described above, with the exception that Todo labeled the S group "TS."
As outlined above, the Kanji Networks materials expand on Todo's contribution in four
ways.
First, by noting the existence of a distinct semantic function in each of the seven consonant
groups identified by Todo.
8

Second, by noting that not only the initial consonant but also the final consonant in ancient
Chinese exerted semantic influence.
Third, by noting that the vowels O and U also exerted semantic influence on terms in ancient
Chinese, suggesting curvature, roundness or massiveness.
Fourth, by delineating the eight distinct types of the sound note occuring in phonetic
compound characters.

Points of Note Regarding the Characters

Previous Forms
Until the Second World War, the forms of the Chinese characters employed in the various
Asian countries were quite similar. Toward the end of the 1940s, however, Japan simplified
hundreds of characters, and China took an even more dramatic simplification path in the
1950s. Here, we concentrate on the previous and present forms of Japanese characters.
Examples of old and new styles include the following. Present styles precede the former.
Present
Style

Previous
Style

Inevitably, these simplifications have confused the etymological origins of the characters. To
take just one example, the right-hand element in depicts (variant of ) river between
a horizontal line at top and at bottom (originally earth) subterranean watercourse.
Meanwhile, the right-hand element in the present style, , is hand/action indicator +
earth make round lumps of earth. The transformation of into makes us suppose
there must be some connection between and, say, , but this is hardly the case.
Another example of confusion can be seen in the characters , , and , all of which
feature the element (person standing outstretched). Attempting to etymologize these
characters according to their present forms is a fool's errand, however, for the traditional
forms were in every case written not with but with (dog/beast).
While the present forms of the characters must of course be recognized and employed, it is
9

the previous forms of the characters that point us in the correct etymological direction.

Alternate Forms
Japanese and English-language kanji reference sources distinguish between the following
forms of characters: standard (), traditional (), non-standard ( or the more
inclusive ) popular, non-authorized () and abbreviated () forms. (The latter
two also fall under the rubric.) This applies both to Everyday Use Characters (EUC)
and all others outside the list. It should be noted that use of the term non-authorized begs
serious questions concerning who is empowered to do the authorizing, as well as the basis
for determining which of alternate forms get noted and which do not.
Again, with respect to the non-EUCs, forms offered as standard can vary from publisher to
publisher, and may be in turn occasionally at odds with what can be produced with the JIS
character codes (see next paragraph). The most notable example in this regard would be the
element; publishers tend to go with the four-stroke , JIS with the threestroke.
Part of the confusion owes to inconsistencies in the JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard)
character codes. These codes, which were determined by the Japanese Standards
Association, a group under the aegis of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, feature
inconsistencies of the following sorts.
Type of Distinction
Stroke Direction

Sample Set 1
Sample Set 2
Sample Set 3

Presence/Absence of a
Stroke

Length of a Vertical Stroke

Shape (Stroke Count

Unaffected)

Shape (Stroke Count

Affected)
For the non-EUCs, it often happens that the JIS form available is not the one that Kanji
Networks would prefer to offer as the main entry form; this is certainly the case for
characters such as , and . However, one cannot always be happy.
In sum, and with respect to the non-EUCs, students should bring a flexible attitude to bear
on the forms, stroke counts and assigned ON/KUN readings they can expect to find when
comparing numerous sources.

Borrowed Meanings
Sometimes, one or more meanings of a given character have nothing to do with its
etymology. This is because the character was "borrowed" to act as the written form of
10

another term, normally a homonym. The borrowed meaning was attached to the character, as
it were, with no regard for the character's original sense. (An example of borrowing in
English would be "gay," a word that entered English in the 13th century and for hundreds of
years meant "happy," "merry" or "bright" before acquiring its present sense during the 20th
century.)
Returning to kanji, the borrowing might take place in China, or in later in Japan. In some
cases, the borrowing was prompted by graphic similarities between characters. One example
from China involves the character , with its borrowed meanings of "think" and "consider."
These meanings were taken from a separate character, . originally indicated simply an
elderly person with a bent back (compare ), but owing to graphic similarity with
("investigate deeply") and the fact they are homonyms (both anciently pronounced KOG),
the meanings "think" and "consider" came to be attached to .
Expediency was often the reason behind borrowings. For instance, has a minor meaning
of "defend," which properly belongs to the more complex character . What happened was
that one or more ancient authorities decided to omit the element at the bottom, thereby
saving the trouble of writing five strokes. Of course, they could only afford to do this
because they were confident their readers would know enough to attach the sense of
"defend" to the character . This usage eventually gained general currency, and so the
character came to merge with the meaning "defend."
Borrowings in Japan include the meaning "shellfish" in (on account of the resemblance
between and ) and the sense of "unable to do" in (originally, "take an object in
hand").

Mirror Image Meanings

The Yin/Yang concept in Chinese philosophy posits that all things in the universe are
generated by the interplay between opposed forces such as light and dark, male and female,
positive and negative etc. Among the Chinese characters, this philosophy occasionally
appears in the form of mirror image meanings. For example, means "good fortune" or
"happiness," although the character derives from a pictograph of handcuffs. The logic is that
the flip side of being handcuffed is being released from bondage, one manifestation of good
fortune.
Another character displaying mirror image meanings is , which originally indicated a
servant standing by to carry out the orders of a superior. therefore contains the dual (and
opposed) senses of "wait" and "proceed." We find the former sense at work in the
compounds and , and the latter sense operative in and . (How came to mean
"temple" is another story in itself.)

Atavistic Meanings
Some compound characters have what may be called atavistic meanings. These meanings
are drawn from a constituent element of the character in question rather than from the
character itself. Examples include "control" in (from ), "hang," "droop" and "suspend"
11

in (from a combination of earth and a pendent ear of grain), and "palace" in (from
the left-hand element).

Reverse-Image Graphic Forms

As shown by their ancient forms, certain pairs of characters are reverse images of each other.
Among the everyday use characters in Japan, this applies to and , and , and ,
and , and , as well as and .

Replacement Characters
In the long course of Chinese history, many characters lost their original meanings and came
to refer to something completely different (see the section on Borrowings). When necessary,
the Chinese devised replacement characters by tacking on a radical. Often, person serves
this function, as in , , , , , and (the replacements for , , , , , and
). Other examples include for (adding movement), for (adding
grass/plant), for (adding tree/wood), for (adding hand), for (adding
fire), for (adding cloth); for (adding insect/creature), and for
(adding words).

Shape Indicators
It is common for radicals to be employed not for the meanings they normally convey but for
senses suggested by their shapes. This is particularly true for (normally "cliff"): its
convenient right-angle shape is pressed into service for meanings as diverse as a hanging
cloth or pelt, a cover, a roof, furrows in a field, and a cooking stove. To take a few other
examples from the everyday use characters, we find (grass/plant) representing horns,
(fire) suggesting a symmetrical object, (jewel) standing in as a musical instrument,
(boat/ship) indicating the contours of footgear, and (pattern) imitating fronds.
Return to Top | Return to Previous Page
Characters Reinterpreted in Japan
Dozens of characters have been interpreted one way in China, and a different way in Japan.
For example:
(In China): As per (fixity) + metal solder (metallic compound that binds objects
together) ingot; (medicinal) tablet ( objects of prescribed or fixed shape). (In
Japan): As per (fixity) + metal metallic device that fixes something in place
lock.
(In China): fang/mesh ( cross) + valley/gorge zigzagging gorge (i.e., with a
course that repeatedly crosses back and forth over itself). (In Japan): fang/mesh (
cross) + valley/gorge echo ( sound that crosses a valley).
(In China): As per , the previous form of (be pressed upon) + metal the skirt
of a helmet (which is pressed upon the wearer's neck by the helmet). (In Japan): bad +
money bad money.

12

Repositioning of Elements
The same elements are sometimes employed in two characters. In duals such as and ,
and , and , or and , the respective characters are simply variants of each
other. In other duals, however, such as and , and , and , and , and
, and , and , or and , the separate characters bear independent meanings.

Tripling or Quadrupling of Elements

A number of characters contain the same element tripled. The tripling suggests the idea of
"many." Some examples include , , , , along with the right-hand element in or
the element in . Also, the previous forms of a number of characters contain tripled
elements: (now ), the top element of (now ), in (now ) and so on. Note
that , , and / all belong to the same word family, the concept of which is "Collect a
number of items."
Rarely, an element is quadrupled within a character. is one such example, as is (the
previous form of ). Quadrupling dragon by aligning two on top and two on bottom
produces a 64 stroke character offered in some dictionaries with the meaning "verbose."

Transformation of Elements
Elements sometimes morph into other, graphically similar but originally distinct elements.
This process has occurred both in China and Japan.
For instance, the elements in and are now identical in appearance. However, the
in was originally a pictograph of a pedestal, while the in was originally an
ideograph showing two curving lines serving as an abstract representation of the idea of
"sloppy/loose." As for , this character appears to contain the element (one hundred),
but an early form of reveals the element to have been two people sleeping with their
knees pulled to their chests.
In Japan, distinctions between certain characters have been muddied by post-war alterations
of standard forms (see above). The and elements in and are two examples,
having once been the similar but etymologically distinct and . Compare also the
previous form of , which was .
Of course, it also happens that certain elements transform into other, quite different
elements. Whether the transformations were deliberate or the results of miscopying is a
matter of interpretation. Examples from China include the element in , , , and
inter alia (originally ), the element in (originally ), the element in
(originally a pictograph of a chisel), the element in (originally ) and so on.
On the other hand, some elements that now appear independent were once more familiar in
form. Examples include (originally + ), and (originally + an element
combining [shoot swelling up below the surface of the earth] and grass/plant).
13

Abbreviated Forms
Often, an element appearing within a character serves as an abbreviated form of a
graphically similar element. We can see this tendency at work in characters such as , ,
and , where , , , and act as abbreviated forms of , , and ,
respectively. As stated above, for the Chinese, the important thing was that an element
suggest the proper sound; graphic considerations were secondary.

Action Indicators
Five elements having something to do with a hand account for nearly all action indicators.
These are , , , (originally, a hand placing an object upright) and (variant form:
), originally a hand wielding a stick.
The only other action indicator used with any frequency is . Drawn from the left side of
go/crossroads, normally indicates "movement," but functions as an action indicator in
characters such as , , , and .
Among other elements employed as action indicators are pair of hands (in ), leg (in
), and movement (in ).

ON and KUN Readings of Kanji

In Japan, kanji are pronounced according to what are known as ON and KUN readings. ON
() readings are Japanese emulations of the sounds of the characters as they were
pronounced on the Asian mainland at the time they were imported to Japan. KUN ()
readings are native Japanese terms that were assigned to kanji of like meanings. For
example, the character (potato) has an ON reading of and a KUN reading of . All
characters created in China have ON readings, though in modern Japanese these readings are
sometimes obsolete, such as with , and . Meanwhile, not all characters bear KUN
readings, but those that do may have multiple readings. For example, and each have
ten KUN readings in common usage.
The background of the ON readings is quite complex. Beginners can get by if they bear in
mind that there are two main types of ON readings, explaining why is pronounced KA in
but GE in , or why is pronounced KAN in but KEN in . The
following explanation is for those with a deeper than average interest in the development of
Japanese.
There are four types of ON readings: GO (), KAN (), TOSO () and Customary.
GO readings take their name from the Wu (Japanese: ) Kingdom (C.E. 222-280). The
Wu Kingdom was one of the trio of entities that comprise the Three Kingdoms Period (C.E.
220-280) of Chinese history, the others being the Wei (220-265) and the Shu (221263) Kingdoms.
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The GO readings penetrated Japan from the Asuka () Period (592-645 or 592-710)
through the Nara () Period (710-784). GO readings are of two types. The first are
readings taken from the spoken language of the Yangzijiang () Basin as filtered
through the Korean kingdom of Paekche (). The second readings were transmitted
directly to Japan from Zhejiang () Province, where the Wu Kingdom had been
sited.
GO readings that remain in use in contemporary Japanese are often connected with Buddhist
terms, though they are the sole ON readings for common characters such as:
not not not not
not not not
not not not not
not not not
not not not not
not not not not
not not
KAN readings are those of the Sui ( A.D. 581-618) and Tang ( 618-907) Dynasties.
Some scholars believe that Sui Dynasty readings were making their way into Japan
simultaneously with the GO readings, but generally the KAN readings are considered to
have been transmitted during the early Heian () Period (794-1192).
The KAN readings are based on the language spoken in the capital of the Sui and the Tang,
Changan (: present-day Xian [] in Shaanxi [] Province). The pronunciations
were brought back to Japan by visiting emissaries and students.
TOSO readings are those of the Sung ( 960-1279 A.D), Mongol ( 1271-1368), Ming
( 1368-1644) and Manchu ( 1616-1912) Periods. They were brought into Japan by
merchants and Buddhist priests in the Kamakura () Period (1192-1333) and on down.
Examples of TOSO readings include , , ,
or , and .
Customary readings are those that were transmitted imperfectly. Examples include
KAN and GO KAN and GO
KAN and GO KAN and GO
In extreme cases, a character can be equipped with all four types of ON readings. One such
character is (apricot), the ON readings of which are (GO); (KAN);
(TOSO); and (Customary).
However, most characters have only one or two readings in active use.

Chinese Kanji Etymology Key Points

Free Online Kanji Etymology Dictionary

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Etymology keypoints can be accessed from the Online Etymological Dictionary of kanji,
Chinese characters as used in Japan. For detailed information on any of the following topics,
click the MORE hyperlinks to reach the appropriate sections of the Reference Page.
Types of Characters
Chinese characters are of three types: pictographs, ideographs and compound characters.
Pictographs
Pictographs are representations of concrete objects: moon, sun, river, mountain, bird, sword,
mouth, hand and so on. Pictographs also account for nearly all of the radicals (or classifiers)
as described below in the Compound Characters section. There are several hundred
pictographs in all.
Ideographs
The handful of ideographs among the Chinese characters convey abstract notions such as
unity, concealment, extension etc.
Compound Characters
Compound Characters are composed of two elements. The first element is a "radical" (or
"classifier"). Character dictionaries assign nearly all characters to one of approximately 70 of
these radicals.
The second element is a sound note, suggesting both the pronunciation and the meaning of
the character. In a small number of compound characters the sound conveyed by the second
element is anomalous, for which reason compound characters have traditionally been divided
into phonetic compounds and semantic compounds.
Phonetic elements (or sound notes) most often match that of the compound character
precisely, such as KUAT and KUAT. In other instances the initial or final consonants
are altered: TAM and KAM; SAG and SAR. In a smaller number of cases the
vowel is transposed: NAG and NUG. We also find phonetic elements functioning in
other ways such as to convey onomatopoeic or mimetic sounds, to transliterate loan words
and so on. There are eight types of sound notes in all.
Word Formation In Proto-Chinese
This dictionary arranges Chinese characters according to word families of phonologically and
semantically related terms. Building upon research undertaken by Bernhard Karlgren and
Akiyasu Todo, the earliest sounds of the terms in proto-Chinese are reconstructed along the
pattern Consonant-Vowel-Consonant.
Initial consonants are K, L, M, N, P, S and T. The vowel in most terms is something between
short A and E, here rendered as A. The vowel may also be O or U, and a number of word
families feature the medial glide UA. Final consonants are G/K, NG, M, N, P, R and T.
Semantic Function of Consonants
Each initial consonant suggests a broad semantic background for characters beginning with
that consonant. Here are the semantic indicators for each initial consonant, followed by a
partial selection of the kinds of terms found in each initial consonant network.
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Initial K- = Frame:
boxes and containers; foundations of buildings; cavities; enclosed passageways;
shackles/handcuffs; square tools; crossroads; humans, gates and other objects framing each
other by standing in opposition; nuts in shells, grain in husks, beans/peas in a pod, shellfish in
shells and other objects in containers; yokes; molds; footwear and garments that contain the
body in full or part.
Initial L- = Continuum:
footpaths; literal and figurative belts; strips of material; stripes; dripping, flowing or trickling
water/liquid; linked waves; patterned grain of wood; chains/cables; lengths of rope;
interwoven vegetation; furrows; stretching vines.
Initial M- = Conceal:
the sun concealed (by darkness, cloud cover, vegetation); threads, insects, and heads of grain
that are fine/tiny to the point of near-invisibility; persons concealed by passing away; fish nets
or traps concealed beneath the surface of the water; physical/figurative blindness; concealing
grass/vegetation; concealing curtains or pieces of cloth.
Initial N- = Supple:
supple female bodies; supple body parts (ears, earlobes, droopy beard); vegetation/food
softened/made supple by being heated; cloth/fabric softened in liquid; bodies wasted/softened
by illness; swordblades and other flexible weapons; clinginess; seals created from softened
clay; pliable hides; vines and other supple objects that coil/twist about; gently bending arms
and vegetation.
Initial P- = Spread:
goods spread for display/sale; food spread for a feast/meal; spreading leaves/vegetation;
liquid/fragrance that spreads to right and left, or in all directions; liquid overflowing its
container; hands spread to slap/strike, or to grip a handle; spreading wounds; spreading tiles;
lightning spreading through the sky; waterplants spreading over the surface of water; sails and
other types of spreading cloth; seeds spread through fields; pelts/fabric wrapped about the
body; wings wrapped around a bird's body; sea creatures enveloped in shells; objects such as
fabric or soft boards that spread in being folded back upon themselves.
Initial S- = Small/Thin/Slender:
piles of vegetation, plant matter, grain, food etc; piled rocks; piled earth; pile of wood
shavings; objects that are cut/aligned irregularly; long or tall, slender objects such as masts,
reeds, wells or fences; hairpins, phalluses, trails of liquid and other slender objects that
penetrate tight spaces; fragments of metal, wood or bone; moss, coral, baby teeth and other
small, tightly adhering objects; arrangements of small/fine objects such as thorns on a plant,
birds in trees or sand on a beach; sheaves, wheel spokes converging in hubs, arrows
compacted in a quiver and other tightly compressed objects.
Initial T- = Straight:
literal piles of objects such as firewood, meat, valuables or metal; figurative piles; lizards,
snakes, wriggling insects and other straight creatures; the shuttle of a loom, a horizontal bar
on a vehicle and other machines/machine parts that move in a straight line; straight movement
in both vertical and horizontal directions; pipes, tubes, caverns and other straight, tubular
objects; flames, gas, the sun and other rising objects.

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(Initial S terms represent a branch of the initial T group, emphasizing small/thin/slender

applications of the idea of straightness.)
Among the final consonants, the G/K ending suggests that the meaning of the character is
directly connected with the main idea expressed by the initial consonant (see above).
KAG/LAG/MAG/NAG/PAG/SAG/TAG and their final K variants
KAK/LAK/MAK/NAK/PAK/SAK/TAK may be considered linguistic templates which the
other finals modify to create more specific meanings for the relevant terms. Each of the
remaining final consonants suggests a specific semantic nuance for the characters ending with
that consonant. Here are the semantic indicators for each final consonant, followed by a
partial selection of the kinds of terms found in each final consonant group.
Final -NG = Extend:
bodies that stretch and/or go stiff; persons or objects standing in distant opposition;
sound/fragrance drifting from one point to another, linking the two points in distant
opposition; actions or processes that continue a long time, such as savoring food in the mouth,
protracted spasms, lengthy songs or dramatic performances; endlessly flowing water;
vegetation spreading out of sight; long strings of shells/jewels; writing/ornamentation spread
at length over a surface; tall piles or long trails of objects; steam, vapor or gas that rises high
in the air.
Final -M = Encompass:
people fallen into holes; food or other objects contained in the mouth; fruit encompassed by
skin; grain encompassed by husks; objects covered by thick vegetation or by darkness;
drenched objects; a fetus encompassed in a womb; needles, hairpins and other slender objects
concealed in filling narrow spaces; cavities and containers filled with liquid.
Final -N = Adhere/Be proximate:
weapons contacting an enemy's body; contact of body parts with other objects;
hunting/fishing implements contacting their targets; tightly knit groups of people, birds, fish
and other creatures; tight rows of like objects; cloth tightly wrapped about (parts of) the body;
roofs fit upon buildings; paired objects in close proximity; points of contact between land and
water; proximate pieces of finely cut/chopped objects such as vegetation and food; objects
lying flat on the ground.
Final -P = Press:
be pressed upon by attackers; objects sandwiched between others; objects exerting pressure
downward, or directly upon the ground; tight compaction of like objects such as threads,
insects or vegetation; human bodies pressing upon bedding or upon other human bodies.
Final -R = Continuum:
elongated objects such as garments or weapons; prolonged activity such as speech, prayer,
singing, rituals, irrigation, erosion, carving, scraping, polishing or sharpening of knives;
prolonged sensations such as reverberations, irritation or illness; continuous states or
relationships such as human friendship, reverence of ancestors or the lasting effect of gluelike substances; neat lines of people or of objects such as eaves, fruit or footprints; abstract
elongation such as in the slow passage of time.
Final -T = Cut/Divide/Reduce:

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reduction in size by cutting of vegetation, carving of wood, or biting/chewing of food;

division of objects such as in the splitting of logs or the ripping of cloth; reduction of empty
space in objects such as rooms and containers, or in the covering of open space by vegetation
or water; reduction in length such as in knotting a rope; reduction of darkness by the
application of light; reduction of physical capacities on account of fatigue, illness, blindness
or numbness; reduction of physical capacities of animals by trapping, tethering or penning
them; reduction of emotional capacities on account of anger, distress or excitement.
Semantic Function of the O and U Vowels
The vowel O suggests the idea of curvature, sometimes extending to "curve and
surround/envelop." The U vowel, when it is the lone vowel in a term (examples: KUG, LUG,
SUG, TUNG) refers to a circle (whether full or nearly full) or to a bulky/lumpy mass.
However, when the U vowel is employed as part of the diphthong UA (examples:
KUAN/KUAR/KUAT, SUAN/SUAR/SUAT), the signification is most often the O vowel
sense of curving/round. Here are the semantic indicators for these vowels, followed by a
partial selection of representative terms.
Vowel O = Curvature:
backs bent with illness or age; tree branches or the necks of humans/animals bent with weight;
contorted bodies; trees bent with decay; arched bridges; curved stretches of land or other
natural phenomena such as caverns; winding constructions such as palaces and official
buildings; birds or the sun curving into sight over the horizon; coiling vegetation, snakes or
threads; curved movement such as in kneading or bending objects into shape, sweeping with a
broom, or rowing a boat; bulging objects such as water jugs, gourds, pimples or pregnant
bellies; curved objects such as eggs, nuts or colanders; objects with curved portions such as a
swordblade, the hull of a boat, or a flag attached to a pole and flapping in the breeze; arcs
formed by liquid poured from a container, or by humans/animals moving in a semi-circle.
Vowel U = Circle/Mass:
round objects such as baskets, huts or circular buildings; lumpy objects such as heads,
hunched bodies, breasts; skin protuberances or tree stumps; massive objects such as pillars,
ridgepoles, downed boars or heavy bells; crowds of people or swarms of insects/creatures;
curved objects such as earthenware, roofs or animal horns; round cavities filled with fluid or
occupied by bodies; circuitous trails, winding hills and other curved landscape features;
masses of hair such as in topknots or shaggy dog fur; masses of grain/vegetation; heaps of
food; tightly-massed inanimate objects such as ships in a harbor, spokes in a hub or precious
stones in an accessory; objects compacted by hand or tightly grasped in the fist.
Vowel UA = Curving/Round:
melons; wings; hoops; baskets; round and tubular containers; pools of water; objects enclosed
in the hands; crowns; arcs or halos of light; circular piles of vegetation; round fruit; barrels;
revolving objects and other forms of rotating/circular movement; rounded mountain tops or
hill peaks; round bundles of goods or of vegetation; curling of the fingertips or cupping of the
hands; strips of cloth wrapped about and covering the eyes; bound objects such as scrolls and
tablets; round fish eggs; blossoming buds; cylindrical tubes, skewers or blocks; puckering of
the lips; persons or objects arranged in a circle; squatting figures; winding waterways or
passages; round holes and tools for drilling round holes.
Sample Terms
Semantically related terms are by no means restricted to a single consonant network. Five

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kanji concerned with the humble pea or bean and their seed vessels (the pod) suggest why and
how this is.
The KAP word family (Frame + Press) contains the character , meaning "pod." Here, the
twin sides of the seed vessel are visualized as framing elements that press against the peas or
beans contained within.
In the KUAN word family (Frame + [Curving/Round] + Adhere/Be Proximate) we find
("pea"), referring to the round legumes contained in and adhering to the framing element, the
pod.
The NAM word family (Supple + Encompass/Conceal) has "beans," that is, beans covered
and hidden by a supple pod.
"bean pod" belongs to the TAP word family (Straight + Press). Here, the emphasis is on the
pod as a straight object the sides of which exert pressure upon the contents.
Finally, "bean" is a member of the TUG word family (Straight + Circle/Mass + Straight).
In this case, the emphasis is on the round or lumpy shape of the bean contained in the straight
object, the pod.
Chinese Kanji Etymology Definitions
Free Online Kanji Etymology Dictionary

Hikaru Morimoto and I collaborated on research into Chinese characters for nearly a dozen
years, concluding with his death in 2004. At the time of his passing, we had prepared 4,000
etymologies organized largely along the lines of the word families in Chinese model
developed by Tokyo University professor Akiyasu Todo (1915-1985). Distinguishing our
etymologies from Todo's was the viewpoint that phonosemantic principles apply to the initial
consonants and the vowels O and U in the ancient language of the Han.
In April 2005 I created the Kanji Networks dictionary site. The site began with 1,945 of the
etymologies Morimoto and I had prepared. Later I added the remaining of the 4,000 original
etymologies, followed by an additional 2,500 etymologies worked up on my own.
With 6,500 characters now available for cross-comparison, three additional points about the
characters gradually and successively presented themselves to me.
Point One: Phonosemantics are at work in the ancient language not only in the initial and the
medial vowel, but in the final consonant as well.
Point Two: Apparent anomalies in pronunciation and meaning are largely explained by
consonant shifts, primarily in the initial but also in the final.
Point Three: The traditional division of compound characters into phonosemantic compounds
and ideogrammic (aka logical aggregrate, or semantic) compounds is highly flawed,* the
reason being that ALL compound characters attested in the early oracle bone and bronzeware
inscriptions are phonosemantic compounds. For characters such as , or where the
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phonetic component is not obvious, the explanation lies in 1) consonant shifts (Point Two
above), 2) graphic change, 3) the employment of abbreviated or variant forms, or 4)
(extremely rarely) borrowed pronunciations.
I will shortly be issuing material to substantiate Point Three. When I do, I will revise the
material on this site's reference page concerning compound characters accordingly.
(* Highly flawed but not completely lacking foundation, as ideogrammic compounds do exist
in both Chinese and Japanese. These, however, were devised centuries and millenia after the
classical period of character formation ending with the oracle bone and bronzeware
inscription styles.)
I am currently revising the etymologies in light of Points One, Two and Three.
The following chart presents examples of elements that appear frequently in compound
characters. Each element is assigned a semantic keyword (denoted as a "descriptor"). The
third column presents a representative selection of compound characters in which the element
appears and exercises the semantic influence noted. The examples are in no particular order.
Note that the semantic descriptors do not necessarily match the elements' meanings when they
are used as independent characters. Click on any character to view its complete etymology.
Element

Semantic Descriptor in
Compound Characters
Split

Sample Compound Characters

Press/Fit Together

Envelop

Adhere

Cut Off

Connecting Pipe/Tube

Exert Heavy Downward

Pressure
Scoop Out Remove

Intensity; Great Degree

Slender/Neat

Small Likeness

Spread

Long, Covering Element

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Concealed

Long Series

Bent/Round

Pile In A Neat Cone Shape

Tall/High

Tall And Limber

Cross/Twist

Pile Up

In a final note regarding updates, I replaced the previous semantic descriptor for the Initial NConsonant Network (Flexible) with Supple, as the latter nuance is more frequently
represented in the etymologies than the former.
Remaining Characters
Naturally, 6,500 characters is but a fraction of all those that have ever been created. The
Japanese standard is considered to be Dai Kan-Wa Jiten (: revised and expanded
version of 1960; edited by [Morohashi Tetsuji] inter alia), which contains 50,000
characters. In China, a 1994 book lists 85,000 while another publication said to be on its way
will apparently break the six-digit mark.
For all that, a random sampling of the 50,000 Morohashi characters suggests that well over
half are alternate forms and that another large chunk are personal nouns. The sampling also
reveals thousands of characters for which the original significations and/or historical usages
are uncertain (many of these refer to plants or to insects and other small creatures). That
leaves, according to my rough calculations, approximately 4,000 characters for which
etymologies might be produced with confidence. I hope to add as many of these as possible to
the Kanji Networks corpus in coming years.
Credit for all that is good and useful in this dictionary belongs to Hikaru Morimoto. With me
rests the blame for everything else.

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