Tuesday 31 May 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 厂

厂 is another typical pictograph Chinese character. It is too abstract for us to reason its meaning even from its Oracle Script - . It is actually the drawing of primitive living place - cave of ancient Chinese people, similar to the picture below:
Live in a cave
Original meaning of 厂 refers to a simplest shelter formed naturally under a cliff

Please remember 厂's original meaning. We will see many other Chinese characters, which contains 厂, are related to this original meaning of 厂.

And as people no longer lived inside a cave, 厂 is eventually borrowed to mean buildings which are specious with simple structure for workers to work inside, like those workshops of a factory. Of course modern factories can have very complicated workshops now.
Below is the evolution history of 厂: (image taken from http://www.vividict.com)

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 厂
Now it is time to enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 厂 inside:

王福厂

Sunday 29 May 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 剪


Looking at our new character today - 剪, we can easily divide it into two parts: 前 and 刀. You might have wondered before that why scissors (剪) is somehow related to ahead (前)?

We have learnt 刀 long time ago, which means knife. While 前, which we just learnt, originally describes the scene that "a boat cut through the surface of water", as shown below:

The boat riding waves

What kind of cutting tool has similar effect while in usage? I guess you have got some ideas now.
Take a breath, we will reveal the answer after examine its evolution history first: (image taken from http://www.vividict.com)
Learn one Chinese Character a day - 剪
Now look at the image below, isn't the pattern similar of usage of scissors comparing to boating image above?
scissors cut paper

It is interesting to know that Seal Script of 剪 is same as that of 前 - . Chinese ancestors must noticed the similarity between boating and usage of scissors when they created 剪.

Yes, 剪 means scissors as noun, while it is used as a verb, it means use scissors to cut.

I guess it should now make more sense to you while you look at 剪? Anyway let us enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 剪 inside:

碧玉妆成一树高,万条垂下绿丝绦。
不知细叶谁裁出,二月春风似剪刀。

Tuesday 24 May 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 前

At the end of our last lesson of 舟, I showed you the a Bronze Script - it is composed of two parts: (foot) on (boat). what did Chinese ancestor would like to present here? Looking at the same picture shown in our last lesson might give us more ideas:
boating
The original meaning of is clear now - stepping on boat (to move it forward). And it was eventually borrowed to mean forward or ahead, which is what boating for!

So we have got the meaning of 前 by checking its Bronze Script, How about its form in other period of ancient China, especially its Oracle Scripts? Let us examine its evolution history as usual: (image get from http://www.vividict.com)
Learn one Chinese Character a day - 前
 One Oracle Script of 前 -  is to mean step () on a boat () and make it moving ( - 行).
Seal Script started to add  () to to vividly describe the scene that a fast moving boat with its fore part dividing the water like a knife.
Clerical Scripthas mistaken  to  while has  been simplified to . Whenever we see  as a Radical of one Chinese character, it is always related to knife or sharpness. After Clerical Script period,  was further simplified to  and finalised at Regular Script - 前. Till then, 前 has lost almost all context which its Oracle Script or Bronze Script has.

We are lucky that archaeologist recovered the evolution history for us that we can now better understand our Chinese characters.

That is it, let us enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 前 inside:
努力向前

Sunday 22 May 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 舟

Today we look at another new character 舟, which is a Pictograph character. However it is kind of transformed too much that we cannot tell its meaning by its current form - 舟.

As usual let us check its Oracle Script or Bronze Script to see whether we can get more clues from them. Below is its evolution history: (image get from http://www.vividict.com)
Learn one Chinese Character a day - 舟
Oracle Script of 舟 -  is still uncertain to us. However looking at one of its Bronze Script ,  the answer might have jumped out from your mind already? 

If we show you the image of a typical small boat in ancient china below, you will then recognise why Oracle Script and Bronze Script of 舟 were written like that.
Boat - 舟
Its Seal Scriptand Clerical Script  started to have the prototype of current way of writing - 舟.

So it is very clear that 舟 is a boat.

Now it is time to enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 舟 inside:
两岸猿声啼不住,轻舟已过万重山
Our next lesson will continue with a character whose Bronze Script is , can you guess what does it mean?


Monday 16 May 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 宾 | 賓

Now we are well prepared to gusss the meaning of 宾, with its tranditional version 賓. This is another example why I dislike Simplified Chinese characters as they brutally break the inner logical and beauty of how Chinese characters were created. 

Let us examine the transitional version 賓. It is composed of 宀 (house), ,(step / walk) and 貝 (valuables). The aggregated logical meaning of them is "(a person) walk/step into house with valuable gifts". Who is that person? A distinguished guest! Is not it still pretty much the same way nowadays for people to treat certain guests as honored by their social status, wealth or dresses?

Anyway let us check its Oracle Script,  Bronze Script and etc to see whether they match with our interpretation. (Image taken from http://www.vividict.com)
Learn one Chinese Character a day - 宾 | 賓
Oracle Script has not included 貝 yet, it probably hints that 貝 was not popular during Oracle Script period yet. In Bronze Script 貝 appeared, which indicates that 貝 (cowrie only as learnt before) became a valuable thing or even currency during that period in ancient China. Seal Script finalized the form of 賓 since then.

Now getting back to Simplified version - 宾, it is composed of 宀 and 兵. 兵 means soldier which has same pronounciation as 賓. That is why 宾 used 兵 as its phonetic radical. But that is really a destructive way to simplify Chinese characters for purpose of reducing number of strokes - how come "soldier break into a house" can be used to mean honored guest?

Anyway, to conclude, 宾 | 賓 means honored guest or distinguished guest.

Now it is time to enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 宾 | 賓 inside.

宾至如归

Saturday 14 May 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 步

Before we reveal the meaning of 步, let us try to disassemble 步 to see what we can get. Upper part of  is obviously 止, lower part is unknown to us yet. From 止 however, we know that 步 must be related to foot. But what is its exact meaning?

If you have seen Oracle Script of 步, you would have a crystal-clear understanding of its meaning actually. So let us check its evolution history now: (image get from http://www.vividict.com/):
Learn one Chinese Character a day - 步

Looking at the simplest version of the Oracle Script - , 步 is obviously composed of two feet, one left and one right. Its Bronze Script  shows the idea even clearer. Some of the Oracle Scripts of 步 contains , which has the meaning of walking along the road as what we have learnt before.

So 步 has the meaning of walking by feet. From the drawing of  or , it is naturally used to mean a unit of linear measure equals to "one step by right foot plus another step by left foot". Further more, from Oracle Scripts of 步, we can see that it has the meaning of steps as well. Same as steps in English, 步 has all the meanings the English word step has.

Please remember that is also a drawing of our foot, the right one.

Before ending our lesson today, let us enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 步 inside:
不积跬步,无以至千里;不积小流,无以成江海。