Depending on the kanji face the left element 言 in multi-element kanjis like 語 is sometimes depicted with 丶 instead of top 一 . It makes me think that the same transformation occurs for 𠫓: 云 changes to 𠫓 in multi-element kanjis. Is this true or not?
3 Answers
As a fuller answer, no, 云 does not change to 𠫓 in multi-element kanji, and these are not related characters.
The character 云 is a regular kanji / hanzi, originally a pictogram for "cloud" that was later repurposed to spell the homophonic word meaning "to say". (Details on Wiktionary.)The 云 character is used as a component of the larger characters 雲 and 曇, and the 云 character gets somewhat compressed, but the strokes remain essentially the same in shape and number.
The character 𠫓 looks quite similar to 云, depending on the font, but this is a very different character. 𠫓 appears to be an alternative or ancestor form of the ㄊ character in the Zhuyin script, also known as bopomofo, used as an alphabet to phonetically spell out Mandarin. ㄊ is essentially the letter T in bopomofo, and it was derived from an old alternative form of the modern character 突, read as tū in Mandarin. (Details on Wiktionary for ㄊ and for 突.) The chart here shows how to spell various Mandarin sounds using various transcription systems. The sixth column, labeled "Zhuyin Fuhao", contains the bopomofo spellings. The table is in alphabetical order. Scroll down to the section starting with t
and you will see the ㄊ character used to spell all of the initial t
sounds.
「云」and「𠫓」are not related.
「云{うん}」
A1
商
甲
乙12
合集21021A2
商
甲
前6.43.4
合集17072A3
春秋
金
姑發劍
集成11718A4
楚
簡
郭・緇・35
A5
古文
說文解字
A6
今
楷
The specific construction of「云」is not universally agreed upon, but there is generally consensus that it contains a phonetic component that originally looked something like
B
商
甲
京津4726
合集21324
If「云」contains a picture of a cloud, then it is said the phonetic component「B」was the original shape of the cloud (cf. resemblance to「A3」) and thus doubles as a semantic component. According to this theory, additional markings were added on to「B」to form「云」, and in「A1」, these markings look like a semantic component「上」.
「上」was originally in the shape of「二」; the vertical stroke was added later, possibly to differentiate the character from the extremely similar shape of the number「二」.
「B」is a phonetic component in several characters, e.g.:
「旬{じゅん}」- originally was extremely similar or identical to「B」; if「B」was the original shape of「云」, this explains why markings were added to「云」to differentiate it from「旬」.
C1
商
甲
佚29
合集16790C2
西周
金
新邑鼎
集成2682C3
楚
簡
{{kr:包}}2・183
C4
秦
簡
睡・日乙46
C5
今
楷
Semantic「日」was added later (「C2」onwards), and「B」was corrupted into「勹」(「C3」onwards).
「軍{くん}」- from semantic「車」(war chariot).
D1
戰國
金
燕右軍矛
集成11484D2
秦
簡
睡・雜8
D3
今
楷
「B」was later corrupted into「冖」(「D2」onwards).
「𠫓」 (Zhengzhang OC:[「毓」]{/*luɡ/}·[「𠫓」]{/*duːd/}·[「㐬」]{/*ru/})
Note: /l/, /d/, and /r/ are related, being all alveolar consonants.
「毓」depicts a woman (「每」, which was originally「女」or「母」with an extra marking near the top) giving birth to a child「𠫓」(upside-down「子」) along with the release of amniotic fluid (now looking similar to「川」).
E1
商
甲
甲722
合集27320E2
西周
金
班簋
集成4341E3
篆
說文或體
E4
今
楷
「毓」is now replaced by「育」, which is a later construction. 「育{いく}」is composed from semantic「毓」>「𠫓」and phonetic「肉{にく}」.
「𠫓」is simplified from「毓」by removing everything except the top-right component.
「[𠫓]{/*luɡ/}」originally represented the same word as「毓」. For example, see 《甲骨文合集》27042, where「𠫓多」is interpreted as「毓多」meaning to birth many children.
F
商
甲
合集27042「[毓]{/*luɡ/}」>「[𠫓]{/*duːd/}」was a semantic extension utilising the simplified「毓」as a phonetic loan for「[突]{/*duːd/}」(sudden/unexpected, cf.「[突然]{とつぜん}」), as recorded by Xu Shen, the author of Shuowen Jiezi.
G1
篆
說文解字
G2
今
楷
Upside down child「倒子」was "creatively reinterpreted" as unfilial child「不孝子」. Quote from Shuowen:
「𠫓,不順忽出也。从到子。《易》曰:『突如其來如[,焚如死如棄如。]』不孝子突出,不容於內也。」
「𠫓」, antagonistic, sudden, and unexpected. From upside-down「子」. Quote from I Ching: "Unexpected/antagonistic [actions] invites [burning, death, abandonment as punishment]". Unfilial children act unexpectedly with hostility and disobedience, and are not tolerated by their own kin.
「𠫓」also represents an upside-down child in several other characters, e.g.「棄」.
「棄」was originally a depiction of a baby「子」being put into a basket「𠀠」to be abandoned (two hands「廾」).
H1
In「棄」,「子」was turned upside-down into「𠫓」and「𠀠」was corrupted into「丗」(or similar;「H2」onwards), while「廾」was corrupted into「木」(「H3」).
商
甲
後2.21.14
合集8451H2
秦
簡
睡・法167
H3
今
楷
Note:「𠀠」as an individual character is now written as「其」, and the original word for basket is now written as「箕」.
「㐬」is the right hand side of「毓」, and did not originally exist as an individual character.
- The right hand side of「[毓]{/*luɡ/}」was later reinterpreted as a phonetic component「[㐬]{/*ru/}」.
「㐬」may also be viewed as a semantic component meaning flow (e.g. of water) > to pass through in some characters, extended from the picture of the upside-down baby and amniotic fluid flowing out of the mother. The most prominent character with this component is「[流]{/*ru/}」; cf.「[流産]{りゅうざん}」(miscarriage).
J1
戰國
金
⿰妾子𧊒壺
集成9734J2
楚
簡
上・性・19
J3
秦
簡
睡・封29
J4
今
楷
References:
The character 𠫓 is actually the character 子 (child) turned upside down. See the compounds 育 (rising up) or 棄 (abandoning). The character 云 is a derivation of the component 厶 (which can be interpreted as energy). In that sense 云 is more specifically energy above, in the sky. So no, 𠫓 and 云 do not have to do anything with each other.
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The character 𠫓 derives from the character 子 (child) turned upside down, but it is not the same character. 子 is three strokes, becoming four when upside down, as seen in the Wiktionary entries for 子, 育, and 棄. 𠫓 is only three strokes: the topmost element is part of the same angled line forming the ム shape. The bopomofo letter ㄊ is a different glyph with a different codepoint, but it too is three strokes, as seen in the Chinese Wikipedia page. Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 18:47
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1Also, 云 graphically includes the ム component, but it is not derived from ム. 云 is a very old pictographic glyph depicting a swirling cloud shape, as visible here in how the glyph originated. Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 18:50