In ancient texts the character 亖 (four horizontal strokes) was used. The current form 四 depicts breathing through the nose and is the original form of 呬. The use of 四 as a number is a phonetic loan.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | sijH | s.li[j]-s | four |
說文解字
《說文》：“四，陰數也。象四分之形。，古文四。亖，籀文四。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.948
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Components
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | drjowng | [m]-troŋ | repeat; double |
| drjowngX | N-t<r>oŋʔ | heavy | |
| drjowngH | N-t<r>oŋʔ-s | weight (n.) |
說文解字
《說文》：“重，厚也。从壬，東聲。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.657-658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: perform music and dance as prayer
Depicts holding decorative plant (𠦪) in both hands (廾) for use in a musical performance to pray.
Components
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tsuwH | tsˤo(ʔ)-s | bring forward; perform (music) |
說文解字
《說文》：“奏，奏進也。从夲，从，从屮；屮，上進之義。，古文。，亦古文。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.778-779
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)