Language/Multiple-languages/Culture/Introduction-to-Han-script

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Hi, polyglots!

Every time you see Han characters, you may see them as random strokes and wonder how other people memorise them. Once you have payed attention for a while and learned about the basics of Han script, they will become crystal clear to you.

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Evolution of Han script

There is an evolution: Egyptian → Proto-Sinaitic → Phoenician → … → most scripts used today. Han script has its own: oracle bone script [甲骨文], bronze script [金文] and other scripts → seal script [篆書] → clerical script [隸書] → regular script [楷書].

There are artistic scripts derived from the regular script:

running script [行書] (a.k.a. semi-cursive script)
grass script [草書] (a.k.a. cursive script)

There are also typefaces for printing:

Song [宋體] / Ming [明體] (a.k.a. sans-serif)
Imitation Song [仿宋體]
Gothic [黑體] (a.k.a. sans)

Glyph forms of early scripts are highly diverse. After the unification of China by Qin dynasty, glyph forms other than the ones used in the State of Qin are abolished. In the modern time, character glyph forms are standarised differently in different sovereign states and dependent territories.

Simplifications of Han characters take place in different times. Systematic simplifications include the creation of the clerical script in the State of Qin and the Chinese Character Simplification Scheme in the People's Republic of China.

script	image
oracle bone script [甲骨文]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Oracle_bone_script
bronze script [金文]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Bronze_script
seal script [篆書]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Seal_script
clerical script [隸書]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Clerical_script
regular script [楷書]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Regular_script
running script [行書]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Semi-cursive_script
grass script [草書]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Chinese_cursive_script

typeface	image
Song [宋體] / Ming [明體]	https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Ming_(typefaces)
Imitation Song [仿宋體]
Gothic [黑體]

Creation and use of Han characters

It is mentioned that there are six categories of characters [六書] in the Rites of Zhōu [《周禮》] without explanation. Nowadays, those six categories of characters are thought to be the following:

creation of characters
category of characters	explanation of the category	example	meaning of the example	explanation of the example
pictographs [象形字]	a character where concrete objects are depicted in pictorial form	日月山水	sun moon mountain water	shape of a sun shape of a crescent moon shape of a mountain shape of a water stream
indicatives [指事字]	a character where abstract ideas are depicted in pictorial form	上下本末	above below root, origin tip, end	a line above another line a line below another line root of a tree apex of a tree
compound ideographs [會意字]	a character consisting of two or more semantic components	武信采比	martial trust pick compare	a dagger-axe and a foot a person with a speech a palm over a bush two persons side by side
phono-semantic compounds [形聲字]	a character consisting of a phonetic and a semantic components	時場銀動	season, time place silver move	a sun and the reading of the word “office, temple” a soil and the reading of the word “sunlight” a metal and the reading of the word “blunt” the reading of the word “heavy” and a force

use of characters
category of characters	explanation of the category	example	meaning of the example	explanation of the example
derivative cognates [轉注字]	characters with different readings and meanings derived from the same original character; disputed as it is unnecessary to exist	考 / 老	examine / old	an old person leaning on a cane
loangraphs [假借字]	a character borrows another character's shape; the character being borrowed changes its form	北其自某	north that self so-and-so	replacing the original word “back”, which is shown as two persons back to back; the replaced character becomes 背 replacing the original word “basket”, which is shown as a basket; the replaced character becomes 箕 replacing the original word “nose”, which is shown as a nose; the replaced character becomes 鼻 replacing the original word “plum”, which is shown as a plum; the replaced character becomes 楳 (obsolete form of 梅)

Components of a character

Here discussed are all about the regular script.

The elementary components of characters are strokes [筆畫]. Strokes are written from left to right, from top to bottom.

The character “永” has all eight of basic strokes, so it is often used to practice calligraphy.

traditional strokes
stroke	modern name of stroke	writing direction
㇐	horizontal [橫]
㇑	vertical [豎]
㇒	throw [撇]
㇏	press [捺]
㇔	dot [點]
㇀	raise [提]
㇚	hook [鉤]
㇁	curve [彎]

modern additional strokes
stroke	modern name of stroke	writing direction
㇄	slant [曲]
㇣	circle [圈]

A character is made of one or more components. The components used for indexing in a dictionary are called “radicals [部首]”. In some cases, a character may be assigned multiple radicals. Explaining Graphs and Analyzing Characters [《說文解字》] and Kāngxī Dictionary [《康熙字典》] published in c. 100 CE and 1716 are two of the most authoritative dictionaries, where 540 and 214 radicals are listed.

The compositions of a characters are the followings:

composition	common radicals
⿰	(many)
⿱	(many)
⿲	(many)
⿳	(many)
⿴	囗
⿵	冂、几、門、鬥
⿶	凵
⿷	匚、匸
⿼
⿸	厂、尸、手、广、戶、疒、羊、老
⿹	乙、勹、弋、气
⿺	大、尢、廴、⽑、⽖、⾛、瓜、辵、鬼、麥、鼠
⿽	水
⿻	木
⿾
⿿
〾
㇯

There are also ways to pick up a type in printing quickly. After the popularisation of computers, different shape-based input methods emerged. Those components of such input methods are called “radicals [字根]”.