mean ‘ten’ (formal). KJ1970:520; YK1976:250; OT1968:413; TA1965:796-9; AS2007:274,462.
Mnemonic: JOINED HANDS CAN PICK THINGS UP OR COUNT TO TEN
322
L4
終
SHŪ, owaru/eru
finish, end
11 strokes
終点 SHŪTEN terminus
終止符 SHŪSHIFU full stop
終わりに owari ni finally
OBI form and bronze form show a length of string with knots at or near the ends, so by extension ‘end’. Seal form onwards is generally taken as 糸 29 ‘silk/thread’, with 冬 199 (‘winter’, qv) as phonetic with associated sense ‘gather, store’. Shirakawa explains 冬 as being the first way of writing ‘end’ (as well as ‘winter’), with 糸 added to it later when 冬 came to be used primarily for ‘winter’, thus distinguishing the two words in writing. MS1995:v2:1010-11; KJ1970:510; YK1976:252; SS1984:408.
Mnemonic: THREADS FINISH IN WINTER
323
L4
習
SHŪ, narau
learn, train
11 strokes
練習 RENSHŪ practice
習字 SHŪJI penmanship
見習い minarai apprentice
OBI . Generally taken as 羽 82, traditional form of 羽 ‘bird feathers’, with 白 (as an abbreviated form of 自 150 ‘nose/self’) as phonetic with associated sense ‘accumulate’; meaning was originally a bird flapping its wings practicing to fly, and by extension ‘repeat and practice; learn’. However, the element taken as 白 or 自 looks somewhat different in shape (close to OBI forms for 日 ‘sun’ in some occurrences), and so Ma interprets instead as 日 66 ‘sun’, to give 羽 over 日, with original sense ‘bird flying in the sky on a fine day’. MS1995:v2:1046-7; OT1968:802; YK1976:252-3; MR2007:289. We suggest taking modern form 白 as 白 69 ‘white’.
Mnemonic: LEARNING TO FLY WITH WHITE WINGS
324
L3
集
SHŪ, atsumeru/maru
gather, collect
12 strokes
集団 SHŪDAN group
編集 HENSHŪ editing
集まり atsumari a gathering
OBI ; bronze ; traditional 坷. Traditional form has three birds on 木 73 ‘tree’ but earlier and modern forms have just one. Has 隹 ‘(short-tailed) bird’ as opposed to 鳥 190 ‘bird’ (general). ‘Birds gathering on tree’ gives the meaning ‘collect, gather’. MS1995:v2:1416-7; MR2007:296; OT1968:1077; KJ1970:511.
Mnemonic: BIRDS GATHERED IN TREE
325
L4
住
JŪ, sumu
reside, live
7 strokes
住所 JŪSHO address
住宅 JŪTAKU dwelling
住み手 sumite occupant
A very late graph (Shirakawa puts origin in Six Dynasties period [229-589AD]). Has 亻 41 ‘person’, and 主 315 (‘main/master’, originally ‘lamp’) as phonetic with associated sense ‘stay still’. OT1968:54; SS1984:415; YK1976:255.
Mnemonic: THE PERSON NEAR THE LAMP LIVES HERE
326
L4
重
JŪ, CHŌ, omoi, -e, kasaneru/naru
heavy, pile, -fold
9 strokes
重大 JŪDAI seriousness
重さ omosa weight
三重 mie three-fold
Simpler bronze form , more complex bronze form . The simpler version consists of 亻 41 ‘person’, with 東 201, now meaning ‘east’ but here with its original meaning of ‘sack (with things inside)’ and as phonetic. The more complex bronze form adds 土 64 ‘earth, ground’ as bottom component. Thus the literal meaning is person standing upright (on the ground) with things in a sack, which by extension stands for ‘heavy’, and then also ‘pile up’ and ‘-fold’. MS1995:v2:1356-7; KJ1970:704; OT1968:1031. We suggest taking the graph as a variant of 車 33 ‘vehicle’ with extra wheels.
Mnemonic: HEAVY VEHICLE HAS EXTRA WHEELS
327
L3
宿
SHUKU, yado(ru)
lodge, shelter, house
11 strokes
宿題 SHUKUDAI homework
宿屋 yadoya inn, hostel
下宿人 GESHUKUNIN boarder Simpler
OBI form ; more complex OBI form ; seal . The simpler OBI has a person 亻 41 kneeling or lying on a mat; the more complex form adds the element 宀 30 ‘roof’. In the seal form the element for ‘mat’ is distorted in shape, and this gets worse in the block script version, which has 百 , seemingly miscopied. Overall meaning is a person sitting in a chair or lying on (or next to) a mat in a building. MS1995:v1:378-9; MR2007:371; KJ1970:519-20. We suggest taking 百 as 百 71 ‘hundred’.
Mnemonic: A HUNDRED PERSONS LODGING UNDER THE SAME ROOF
328
L4
所
SHO, tokoro
place, situation
8 strokes
場所 baSHO place
所有 SHOYŪ possession
居所 idokoro whereabouts
Bronze ; seal . This graph is generally interpreted as 斤 1233 ‘ax’, with 戸 120 (‘door’) as a phonetic for the sound of wood being chopped. The meaning ‘place’ is a loan usage – a physical place at first, then extended to figurative senses such as ‘situation, circumstances’. MS1995:v1:544-6; KJ1970:534; YK1976:264;
