Original meaning: level
Originally depicted a rope wrapped around an arrow. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | yij | ləj | level, peaceful |
| yij | ləj | foreigner (especially to the east) |
說文解字
《說文》：“夷，平也。从大，从弓。東方之人也。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.764-765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 basket or a bag. The current meaning "east" is a phonetic loan.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tuwng | tˤoŋ (< *tˤoŋʔ ?) | east |
說文解字
《說文》：“東，動也。从木。官溥說，从日在木中。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.492-493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)