Depicts some sort of object used by shamans. The exact nature of this object is unclear.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | mju | C.m(r)[o] | magician |
說文解字
《說文》：“巫，祝也。女能事無形，以舞降神者也。象人兩褎舞形，與工同意。古者巫咸初作巫。，古文巫。”
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)
Simplified
Traditional
Depicts poisonous insects (蟲) placed in a container (皿). Alludes to the practice of cultivating poisonous insects inside a container by letting all of the insects devour each other until one poisonous insect remains to use as poison.
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | kuX | [k]ˤaʔ | noxious vermin |
說文解字
《說文》：“蠱，腹中蟲也。《春秋》傳曰：‘皿蟲為蠱。’晦淫之所生也。臬桀死之鬼亦為蠱。从蟲、从皿。皿，物之用也。”
Sources
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)