Zi:习

习(F習) [xí] study (学习); practice/exercise (练习); habit/custom (习惯)

One monosyllabic entry in The ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary (namespace Ci):

►³xí To view this entry, please log in

The simple-form character 习 xí ‘study/practice’ (3 strokes) is an abbrev. of the full-form character 習 (11 strokes), reducing the full-form character to its first 3 strokes (left half of 羽), and omitting the rest (8 strokes; the right half of 羽, and all of 白).
    The Shuōwén Seal form of 習 xí ‘learning to fly’ combines 羽(𦏲) yǔ ‘feathers/wings/flight’, and the old form 白(𪞶𦣹自) zì ‘oneself/itself’ (phonosemantic): the fledgling bird teaches itself (learns, gains the wisdom) to fly, in repeated attempts/failures (falling out of the nest); practice builds good habits (makes perfect), on the path to flight/wisdom.
    Compare: 𥱵(篲彗) suì/huì ‘broom; comet’; 慧 huì ‘clever/wise’; 智(𥏼𥏾) zhì ‘wisdom’ (智慧=慧智: 聪慧机智).
    Note: In the old form of 彗, 𥱵(篲) suì/huì ← MC /ziueis/, the component is 習 xí (phonetic) ← MC /ziep/; cf. 自(𦣹) zì ← MC /dzieis/ (SBGY).
    Compare: 皆 jiē/xié ‘all/harmony’ ← MC /kei/, in which the old lower component is also 白(𪞶𦣹自) zì ‘nose/self’.
    Note: In the modern simple form 习, the upper full-form component 羽 (two wings) is abbrev. to 习 (one wing), and the lower component (白/自 zì ‘self’, not 白 bái ‘white’) is omitted entirely.
    “[習] Young birds learning to fly; to practise; be familiar with; custom — the seal has 自 below: use ones 自 own 羽 wings” —Karlgren(AD).
    “[自] Starting point, the origin, beginning, evolution; the nose being, according to the Chinese embryology, the starting point of the bodily evolution” —Wieger.
    “The 自 (contracted) first attempts to 羽 fly, made by a young bird; 从羽, 从自, 会意。By extension, to repeat the same act, to practice” —Wieger.
    Older graphs associated with 習 seem to have a shape like 口 or 日 below, perhaps signifying the bird nest/egg (HDZ).
    Compare: 西(㢴𧟢) xī ‘west’, said to depict a bird sitting on its nest; 曾, 橧/增 zēng ‘twig nest’.
    Compare: 昔(㫺) xī ‘dried meat; old’, 昔 cuò ‘coarse/crude; mistake’ (錯).
    Compare: 皆 jiē/xié ‘all/harmony’, in which also 白(𪞶) zì ‘nose/self’.
►references: Wieger:159a; Karlgren:AD781; Hànyǔ Dà Zìdiǎn:1.51.3; Bǐshùn Guīfàn:004.1.08; EDOC:0
►components: 𠃌冫
►Cantonese: jaahp-
►stroke 习 (... strokes)
►list characters containing 习 as a component
►list words containing 习 (most common words first)
Unicode: U+4E60
►web links for ‘习’
search web for ‘习’: ►Google ►GT ►Baidu ►Bing ►Yahoo

The Wenlin Zidian (namespace Zi)
URL: https://wenlin.co/wow/Zi:%E4%B9%A0
Refresh this page