0

I'm wondering what type of kanji 蝶 is (like if it's a pictogram, ideogram, etc) and if anyone knows the history behind the kanji itself. I really like this kanji, but there's not much about it from where I've been looking.

Improve this question
1
  • 2
    Where did you look?
    – Leebo
    Commented Oct 7, 2022 at 6:05

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
5

「[蝶]{チョウ}」 (butterfly) is a phono-semantic compound, comprised of semantic 「[虫]{まむし}」 (poisonous snake > worm, insect) and phonetic 「[枼]{ヨウ}」:

  • 「虫」 appears here as a semantic classification component for snakes, worms, insects, and other non-fish slimy or wet animals (e.g. 「蛙」 frog and 「蟹」 crab);
  • 「枼」 is the original form of 「[葉]{ヨウ}」, and appears as a phonetic hint in 「蝶」, 「葉」, and some other characters (most of which aren't used in modern Japanese).
Improve this answer
2
  • It seems reasonable to assume 枼 also acted as a semantic component. Butterflies do look like leaves in comparison to other bugs. So do flatfish.
    – aguijonazo
    Commented Oct 8, 2022 at 1:24
  • 2
    @aguijonazo There's a subtle difference for describing characters here. 枼's original meaning is tree leaves. The morpheme which 枼 represents (Baxter-Sagart OC: /*lap/, flat object) is the one that connects the meanings (flatfish in 鰈, etc.), not 枼 itself, so 枼 is not a semantic component. In other words, 枼's sound provides the semantic connection & etymology, not its meaning (tree leaves) or shape (picture of a tree with emphasised leaves).
    – dROOOze
    Commented Oct 8, 2022 at 2:38

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .