サンクスギビング

先週の木曜日に　はなぶさ先生は「七面鳥 (しちめんちょう) 」が “turkey” の言い方を教えたから、どうしてかが分かりませんだったんですが、私は七面鳥の漢字の意味をしらべました。

Apparently the reason turkeys are called the "seven-faced-bird" is because instead of having a feathered-face, turkeys' faces are covered in a somewhat shiny, multicolored skin, giving them a face of many appearances.

第五課の漢字

場	12 strokes ば ジョウ	Ideogrammic compound: 土 (ground/soil/earth) 昜 (bright/glorious) → meant to represent the sun peaking over the horizon 旦 (dawn/morning) with its rays shining just past the horizon ➔ Therefore, 場 is an imagery of the place that is earth.
	place
寺	6 strokes てら ジ	Ideogrammic compound: 寸(hand/hold/grasp) + 止 (foot/to stop/to relieve) inferring a place of control Actually, 止 is derived from 之 which is the character the Japanese originally used for the possessive particle の . This is why 止 implies possession or control → 止める (とめる)­– transitive, to stop, to prevent, to hold back → 止まる (とまる)­– intransitive, to be stopped, to be suspended ➔ Therefore, often when 寺 is used in a kanji it represents the control of some kind. → 持つ (もつ)­– transitive, to stop, to prevent, to hold back → 時 (じ)­– intransitive, to be stopped, to be suspended → 侍 (さむらい)­– samurai, servant, retainer, “control of a person 人” → 待つ (まつ)­– wait, “control of movements 彳’ → 恃み (たのみ)­– reliance, dependence, favor, “control of the heart 心” 寺 (てら) = temple
	temple
橋	16 strokes はし キョウ	Ideogrammic compound: 木 (tree/wood) + 喬 (tall/lofty/proud/stately) 喬 (tall/lofty/proud/stately) → 高 (tall) provides meaning while 夭 is for pronunciation ➔ Therefore, 橋 ≅  木 + 喬 ≅ tall wooden structure ≅ bridge
	bridge
町	7 strokes まち チョウ	➔ 丁 (street) + 田 (field) → indicating an area where people have settled down to live, aka a town
	town
映	9 strokes うつ(る)・うつ(す) エイ	Phono-semantic compound: 日 (sun/day) suggests the meaning while 央 (center, middle) provides the sound. ➔ The sun 日 is the center 央 of our universe, projecting light as far as it can reach.
	to reflect (light), to project
公	4 strokes おおやけ コウ	Ideogrammic compound: ハ (simplified version of 八) is meant to represent a split or divide → to deviate 厶 (private/secret) ➔ Therefore, 公 → to turn away from privacy (aka be public)
	public, official
園	13 strokes その エン	Phono-semantic compound: 囗 (enclosure) suggests the meaning while 袁 (long kimono) provides the sound.
	garden, park, yard, farm
図	7 strokes はか(る) ズ・ト	Variations: 圖 → 图 → 図 The box 囗 encloses 嗇 which is made up of 來 (simplifies to来) and 㐭 (simplifies to 画) → 来 = “come/future” (like how 来週 and 来年 mean next week and next year) → 画 =  “picture/drawing” ➔ Therefore, 図 = an enclosed picture of the future = a plan ➔ Another way of looking at it is that 囗 encloses 啚/嗇 which is means stingy, thus it is a plan to be frugal
	drawing, diagram, to plan
地	6 strokes チ ジ	➔ 土 (earth) +也 (used for emphasis) = Earth/land/field/ground
	Earth, land
鉄	13 strokes テツ	Phono-semantic compound: 金 (metal) suggests the meaning while 失 (to violate) provides the sound.
	iron
駅	14 strokes エキ	駅 is a simplified version of 驛 where... • Phono-semantic compound: 馬 ‎(“horse”) suggests the meaning while 睪 (spy on) provides the sound. ➔ Therefore, train station 駅 is just a modern version of 驛 which represents a relay station for posting horses
	(train) station
育	8 strokes そだ( てる) そだ(つ) イク	育 is derived from the character 毓 (to raise/rear), which is not used in Japanese. 毓 is a pictogram of a woman giving birth. → To the left is mother 母 while → The portion of the right 㐬 depicts an upside down child 𠫓 (as opposed to 子) with hair hanging downward 川. ➔ Therefore, this kanji is depicts a mother bearing her child. However, in the simplified version the hair 川 is replaced with ribs (肉, ⺼), which is simplified even more by 月.
	to grow up, to raise
道	12 strokes みち ドウ	道 = 辵 ‎(walking) + 首 (head/side/direction) = walking in a specific direction, aka a road/way 辵 = 彳 (step) + 止 (step) = walking/movement, which is simplified to 辶 (radical 162) Also 辶 kind of looks like a man strolling on a road 首 (head/side/direction) is simplified from 𩠐 which is a pictogram of a man’s head   ➔ Therefore, 道 = 辵 ‎(walking) + 首 (head/side/direction) = walking in a specific direction, aka a road/way
	road, street, way
部	11 strokes ブ・へ	Phono-semantic compound: ⻏ ‎(village/city) suggests the meaning while 咅 (spit up) provides the sound. ⻏ is a simplified 邑 (radical 163, “city”) ➔ However, some believe that this kanji is associated with 剖 (“divide”, contains radical 18 刂/刀) therefore representing divisions of parts of a city.
	part, selection, division
屋	11 strokes ヤ オク	Ideogrammic compound: 戸 (door/counter for houses) 至 (arrive/reach/attain) → It’s supposed to look like an arrow in the group, indication that you have reached your destination Other variations of this character → 房 combines 戸 (door/houses) with 方 (person/direction) → 室 combines  (roof) with 至 (arrow) ➔ I imagine this kanji ties two variations into one. You can think of it as... →室, an arrow 至 pointing to a roof 宀 →屋, an arrow 至 pointing to a house 戸 →房,  a person 方 waiting by the door 戸
	roof, house, shop, dealer, seller
車	7 strokes くるま シャ	Pictograph:  It is meant to look like a two-wheeled chariot.
	vehicle, wheel
右	5 strokes みぎ ウ	➔ The first portion 𠂇 for both 右 (right) and 左 (left) represents a hand. The right hand is accompanied by a mouth 口 while the left hand 左 is paired with 工 (pictogram of a bladed tool), which means work. So the right hand feasts while the left hand does labor.      Now, it is no secret that the world is biased to right-handed people, and rightfully so! Studies claim that about 90% of all people on Earth are right-handed.      As a lefty myself, the deep-rooted distaste for lefties actually thoroughly amuses me. And Chinese is not the only language that root negative words like “improper” and “illegal” to the word for left.      Much of English was derived from Latin. It just so happens that the Latin word “dextro,” meaning right, is the root to English words like dexterous, dexterity, and ambidextrous, while the Latin word for left “sinistro” is the root of words like sinister, ambisinister, and sinistrocardia. The universal aversion to left-handedness is sprinkled in most cultures history.
	right
左	5 strokes ひだり サ
	left
近	7 strokes ちか(い) キン	Phono-semantic compound: 辶 (walking) suggests the meaning while 斤 (catty/axe) provides the sound. 辵 = 彳 (step) + 止 (step) = walking/movement, which is simplified to 辶 (radical 162) Also 辶 kind of looks like a man strolling on a road A catty 斤 is a traditional Chinese unit of mass, mostly used for weighing food or other groceries. It is a very small unit, equivalent to 600 grams or 1.3 pounds. ➔ At best, you could acknowledge one catty is small, and therefore this kanji is a like saying a short walk away, aka nearby/close.
	near, close
遠	13 strokes とお(い) エン	Phono-semantic compound: 辶 (walking) suggests the meaning while 袁 (long kimono) provides the sound. 辵 = 彳 (step) + 止 (step) = walking/movement, which is simplified to 辶 (radical 162) Also 辶 kind of looks like a man strolling on a road ➔ I suppose 袁 (long kimono) could be intended to represent a greater length of 辶 (walking), aka far/distant
	far, distant
通	10 strokes とお(る) ツウ	辵 = 彳 (step) + 止 (step) = walking/movement, which is simplified to 辶 (radical 162) Also 辶 kind of looks like a man strolling on a road 甬 means “a path with walls on both sides” ➔ Therefore, a man walks 辶 along a path, passing in between the two walls 甬 enclosing the path
	to go along, to pass
飛	9 strokes と(ぶ) ヒ	Pictograph:  It is meant to look like birds flying upwards ➔ Also, the character appears to be composed of 升 (rise) and sideways 羽 (feather), which can easily be associated with flying
	to fly