480531170

1892
L1
肘
hiji
elbow
7 strokes
hijitsukielbow rest
hijikakearm of chair
hijiKANSETSUelbow joint
OBI ; seal . The OBI form depicts a bent
arm, with a stroke added near the bend of
the elbow to highlight ‘elbow’. The seal form
is of different structure, having 209
‘flesh, body’, with 920 (‘hand’) best taken
as phonetic with associated sense ‘grasp’;
giving the overall meaning ‘that part of
the arm that bends to hold things close (to
chest)’, i.e. ‘elbow’. Ogawa prefers to interpret
here semantically as ‘hand’, but this analysis
is not as satisfactory in providing the link
to ‘elbow’. MS1995:v2:1070-71; SS1984:593-4;
OT1968:816.
Mnemonic: ELBOW CONNECTS HAND TO
BODY
1893
L2
匹
4
HITSU, HIKI
match, cloth, animal
counter
strokes
NIHIKItwo animals
HITTEKImatch
HIPPUordinary people
Bronze ; seal . Interpretations diverge.
In one view, depicts rear end of a horse
(Ogawa), but bronze forms are not really
supportive of this. Another analysis treats
as depicting the forelegs and lower front
bodies of two horses standing side by side,
meaning ‘horses’ (Shirakawa). Another commentator
perceives the bronze forms quite
differently, as depicting a folded roll of cloth
stored in a cupboard or cabinet (Gu). Yet
another analysis (Katō) treats the outer part
of the bronze form (a form which includes a
slightly curved inner stroke) as signifying a
roll of cloth, and one more modestly curved
stroke as representing a second roll, giving
the overall meaning ‘two rolls of cloth next
to each other’. Regarding the discrepancy
in the above between one roll of cloth (Gu)
and two (Katō), Katō asserts that originally
the practice was for just one continuous
length of cloth to be rolled from each end,
producing two shorter rolls. The seal form,
which lengthens and adds extra curve to the
bronze shapes, was further modified in block
script so as to result in the enclosing determinative
(see also 1487), which sometimes
has the general meaning ‘box, container’
in compound graphs. The meanings of
in early Chinese encompass ‘pair, one of a
pair’ (leading to ‘match’), counter for horses
(and subsequently other animals), and unit
for measuring cloth. The original meaning
is difficult to unravel, though ‘rear end of
a horse’ seems unlikely. OT1968:134-135;
SS1984:721; GY2008:73; MS1995:v1:160-61;
KJ1970:207-08; AS2007:413. We suggest
taking this graph in comparison with 28
‘four’, in terms of being a bit short.
Mnemonic: COUNT MATCHING
ANIMALS – NOT QUITE FOUR?!
1894
L1
泌
HITSU, HI
flow, secrete
8 strokes
BUNPITSUsecretion
HINYŌurination
HINYŌKAurology
Seal ; a late graph (Shuowen). Consists
of /42 ‘water’, combined with 597
(‘necessarily’) as phonetic with associated
sense taken either as i] ‘flow out continuously’,
giving ‘water flows out uninterruptedly’ (Katō),
or ii] ‘close, shut’, giving ‘water flows out from
gap once closed’ (Ogawa). Shirakawa suggests
that serves here as onomatopoeic for the
sound of water flowing, but this seems questionable.
KJ1970:806; OT1968:568; SS1984:722.
Mnemonic: WATER IS NECESSARILY
SECRETED AND FLOWS
The Remaining 1130 Characters 565