你 from HSK Level 1 Vocabulary List

The Chinese character 你 (nǐ) for "you" is composed of two parts: the radical 亻(rén) and the phonetic component 尔 (ěr). The radical 亻represents a person, while the phonetic component 尔 is a simplified form of the character 耳 (ěr), which means "ear". This suggests that the original meaning of 你 was "the one who listens" or "the one who is being listened to". Over time, the meaning of 你 has evolved to refer to the second person pronoun "you".The character 你 has a long history in Chinese writing. It first appeared in oracle bone inscriptions from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). In these early inscriptions, 你 was used as a possessive pronoun, meaning "your" or "yours". For example, the inscription "你牛" (nǐ niú) means "your ox".In later periods, 你 began to be used as a second person pronoun. This usage is first attested in bronze inscriptions from the Western Zhou dynasty (c. 1046-771 BC). In these inscriptions, 你 is used to address both superiors and inferiors. For example, the inscription "王曰: '你小子, 其来!'" (wáng yuē: "nǐ xiǎozi, qí lái!") means "The king said: 'You boy, come here!'"By the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), 你 had become the standard second person pronoun in Chinese. It is used in all registers of speech, from formal to informal.The character 你 is also used in other languages that have been influenced by Chinese, such as Japanese and Korean. In Japanese, 你 is pronounced as "anata" and is used as a polite way to address someone. In Korean, 你 is pronounced as "neo" and is used as the informal second person pronoun.