jǐn​jī

golden pheasant

jǐn brocade Simplified

Silk  inlaid with gold  also provides the pronunciation

Components

SoundMeaning component
jīn metal
Meaning component
silks

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode

chickens Simplified

Simplified from a variant form of the traditional character .

Components

Simplified component
yòu again

Shorthand form of the component in the traditional character .

Meaning component
niǎo bird

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode

jǐn brocade Traditional

Silk  inlaid with gold  also provides the pronunciation

Components

SoundMeaning component
jīn metal
Meaning component
silks

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartkimXCə.k(r)[ə]mʔbrocade
Zhengzhangkrɯmʔ
Unicodegyǐm

說文解字

襄邑織文。从帛金聲。

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-SagartZhengzhang Shangfang
Historical images
Academia Sinica

chicken Traditional

Originally was a pictograph of a chicken. Later changed to a phonosemantic compound of and (bird).

Components

Sound component
where? what? how? why?
Meaning component
zhuī, cuī, wéi bird

Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Shang ~1100 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-Sagartkejkˤe fowl, chicken

說文解字

《說文》:“雞,知時畜也。从隹,奚聲。鷄,籀文雞从鳥。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica