Pictograph of a swallow.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | 'enH | ʔˤe[n]-s | swallow (n.) |
| 'enH | ʔˤe[n]-s | feast |
說文解字
《說文》：“燕，玄鳥也。籋口，布翄，枝尾，象形。”
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: high place
Pictograph of a tall building. Similar to 高. Based on the original meaning "high place". The meaning of this character has shifted over time and now means "capital city".
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | kjaeng | [k]raŋ | hill; capital city |
說文解字
《說文》：“京，人所為絕高丘也。从高省，丨象高形。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.453
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)