女生

Etymology & Components

The Chinese word 女生 (nǚshēng) is composed of two characters: 女 (nǚ), meaning "woman" or "female", and 生 (shēng), meaning "to be born" or "life". Together, these characters form the compound word 女生, which literally means "female student" or "girl student".The character 女 (nǚ) is one of the oldest Chinese characters, dating back to the oracle bone script of the Shang dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC). It is believed to have originated from a pictograph of a woman with a child in her arms. The character 生 (shēng) is also an ancient character, dating back to the oracle bone script. It is believed to have originated from a pictograph of a plant sprouting from the ground.The compound word 女生 (nǚshēng) first appeared in written Chinese during the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). It was originally used to refer to female students who were studying at the imperial academy. However, over time, the meaning of the word expanded to include all female students, regardless of their age or level of education.Today, 女生 (nǚshēng) is a common word used in Chinese to refer to female students. It is also sometimes used to refer to young women in general.