Gàn

Jiangxi province

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approved by Prismcool · Feb 14, 2026, 05:16 PM · Reviewed by Prismcool on Feb 14, 2026, 05:16 PM

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Changed fields: hint, originalMeaning, isVerified, components, customSources

Original meaning: to bestow

Depicts a person with outstretched hands () holding a jade ornament (). The (shell) component was later added to clarify the original meaning. Based on the original meaning "to bestow". The current meaning is a phonetic loan. Simplified form of .

Components

Iconic component

Depicts a jade ornament.

Iconic component

Depicts a person with outstretched hands.

Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to than it was in ancient scripts.
Meaning component

In ancient China, shells were used as currency.

Change in meaning
hints at the original meaning of , "to bestow", which is no longer the most common meaning of in modern Mandarin.

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p.521李学勤《字源》p.569
Readings & variants
Unicode