月 from HSK Level 1 Vocabulary List

The Chinese character 月 (yuè) for "moon" is a pictograph that depicts the shape of a crescent moon. The earliest known form of the character appears in oracle bone script, dating back to the Shang dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). In this early form, the character is a simple crescent shape with a small circle in the center. Over time, the character evolved to its current form, which is a more stylized representation of a crescent moon.The character 月 is also used as a radical in other Chinese characters, such as 明 (míng) for "bright" and 朗 (lǎng) for "clear". These characters all share the semantic component of "moon", and the radical 月 helps to indicate this meaning.In addition to its literal meaning of "moon", the character 月 is also used in a number of figurative expressions. For example, the phrase 花好月圆 (huā hǎo yuè yuán) means "a beautiful day with a full moon", and is often used to describe a happy or auspicious occasion. The phrase 海枯石烂 (hǎi kū shí làn) means "until the sea dries up and the rocks rot", and is used to express eternal love or devotion.The character 月 is a rich and complex character with a long history. It is a beautiful character that captures the essence of the moon, and it is also a versatile character that is used in a variety of contexts.