Chinese characters, being a pictorial language, have a depth of meaning.
One of my favourites, and the title of this category about written Chinese, is the character for
melancholy.
愁 chóu
this word consists of 秋 qiū at the top, and underneath, the beautiful ideogram representing heart
心 xīn
If you think about it, maybe you can see the chambers of the heart in this character, especially when written in beautiful calligraphy
this beautiful calligraphy lovingly borrowed from
http://zengut.com/2013/09/01/hearts-and-minds-2/
so autumn in the heart is melancholy.
beautifully poetic, when you think about it, isn’t it?
another interesting symbolism with 心 xīn is the word for anger 怒 nù
is made up of 奴 nú which means slave
and our heart-word, 心 xīn
a slave over the heart is anger… interesting philosophical statement, all in one written word…..
watch this space for more interesting breakdowns of chinese characters….
Is there a word that you would like to know about in Chinese, and what concepts and structures make that word?
if so, drop a reply in the comment box!
How poetic. I would love to see the words ‘cat’ and ‘computer’ in Chinese.
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hi sounja… funny you should mention that, as I was thinking about using the word for computer in chinese to explain the connective thinking the Chinese have for words… stay tuned and watch this space….
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Hi again Sounjia — here is the characters for CAT with an explanation
https://spaceshipchina.wordpress.com/2015/01/12/miao-miao-purr-purr/
any more requests, just let me know!
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Your blog is beautiful – and a wonderful education. I just linked this post to my September Song so that a few more folks might jump over to partake in the riches you have set before us.
It is said that China is inscrutable — most things that are complex and deep appear so without a close investigation. So many thousands of years to investigate where China is concerned, however. How wonderful for you that you get the chance to do so “up close and personal.” How wonderful for us that you share.
xx,
mgh
(Madelyn Griffith-Haynie – ADDandSoMuchMore dot com)
– ADD Coach Training Field founder; ADD Coaching co-founder –
“It takes a village to educate a world!”
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aw…. thanks Madelyn. “inscrutable” – i could do a whole post about that.
hard to know where to begin sometimes.
Yes, one of the aims of this blog was to make a country which for many is a huge unknown more accessible.
im so glad that you find it so and thanks for linking to your September Song.
xxx
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You are most welcome. I hope a few people WILL click the link and see what you have to offer over here. “It takes a village . . .”
xx,
mgh
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