肝

Etymology & Components

The Chinese character 肝 (gān) for "liver" is a pictophonetic character, combining a semantic element and a phonetic element. The semantic element is 肉 (ròu), which means "meat" or "flesh". This indicates that the character is related to something that is part of the body. The phonetic element is 干 (gān), which is pronounced similarly to 肝. This helps to give the character its pronunciation.The character 肝 has been used in Chinese for thousands of years. It is found in the earliest Chinese texts, such as the oracle bone inscriptions from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). In these early texts, the character was used to refer to the liver as an organ of the body. It was also used to refer to the liver as a source of food.Over time, the character 肝 has developed additional meanings. It can now also refer to the liver as a metaphor for courage or bravery. For example, the phrase 肝胆相照 (gān dǎn xiāng zhào) means "to have the courage to face something together". The character 肝 can also be used to refer to the liver as a source of emotion. For example, the phrase 肝肠寸断 (gān cháng cùn duàn) means "to be heartbroken".The character 肝 is a complex and versatile character with a rich history. It is an important character to learn for HSK learners, as it is used in a wide variety of contexts.