Original meaning: back
Pictograph of two people standing back-to-back. Based on the original meaning "back", now written as 背. The current meaning "north" is a phonetic loan.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | pok | pˤək | north |
說文解字
《說文》：“北，也。从二人相背。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Original meaning: dwelling
Depicts a building (宀) made of wood (木). Based on the original meaning "dwelling". The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | sowngH | [s]ˤuŋ-s | (place name) |
說文解字
《說文》：“宋，居也。从宀，从木。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)