Simplified
Simplified form of 貝. Pictograph of a cowrie shell. In ancient China such shells were used as currency.
Simplified
Character Evolution
Component uses
說文解字
《說文》:“儿,仁人也。古文奇字人也。象形。孔子曰:在人下,故詰屈。”
Sources
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Traditional
Depicts an assortment of valuable things, including jade (玉) and shells (貝), being stored safely under a roof (宀). The 缶 component represents the sound.
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | pawX | pˤuʔ | precious thing |
說文解字
《說文》:“寶,珍也。从宀,从王,从貝,缶聲。寚,古文寶省貝。”
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)
Traditional
Pictograph of a cowrie shell. In ancient China such shells were used as currency.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | pajH | pˤa[t]-s | cowry shell |
說文解字
《說文》:“貝,海介蟲也。居陸名猋,在水名蜬。象形。古者貨貝而寶龜,周而有泉,至秦廢貝行錢。”
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)
Traditional
Pictograph of a child (人) with an opening in the top of its head (囟). Represents the soft spot (fontanel) at the top of young infant heads. The 囟 component is written like 臼.
Components
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | nye | ŋe | child |
說文解字
《說文》:“兒,孺子也。从儿,象小兒頭囟未合。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.687
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)