Monday 18 July 2016

Learn one Chinese Character a day - 吉

Today we continue our learning journey to Chinese character 吉. It is composed of 士 and 口 obviously. What meaning did Chinese ancestors want to represent with 口 of 士?

We have known that 王 originally meant the leader of a tribe, the big wizard, who can communicate with both heaven and earth. While 士 originally meant the assistant of 王, who were wizards as well. During a worship ceremony, 士 would surround 王 and speak blessings and good wishes.

Thus Chinese ancestors created 吉 to mean good or blessing, utilizing the fact that 士 speaks (by mouth - 口) all good wishes and blessings. And from how 吉 was created, we can appreciate why 吉 is normally used in the scenario of wishing somebody something good to happen.

We should have better understanding of 吉 with its evolution history: (image taken from http://chinese-linguipedia.org)
Learn one Chinese Character a day - 吉

 One of Oracle Script of 吉 is is believed to mean a pavilion, which could be used for sacrifice ceremonies. Its other Oracle Script is almost the same shape as our current 吉.

Now it is time to enjoy a Chinese calligraphy with 吉 inside:
吉祥如意
Our next lesson will continue with Chinese character 古, which is composed of 十 and 口, can you guess its meaning?

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