初
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Translingual
Stroke order | |||
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Han character
初 (Kangxi radical 18, 刀+5, 7 strokes, cangjie input 中尸竹 (LSH), four-corner 37220, composition ⿰衤刀)
Derived characters
- 𢮀, 𦁅, 𫋶, 𪯨, 𭝘, 𤙟, 𤯦, 𠸗, 𩷞, 𪁲, 𠠭
References
- KangXi: page 137, character 33
- Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 1911
- Dae Jaweon: page 310, character 1
- Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 327, character 22
- Unihan data for U+521D
Chinese
simp. and trad. | 初 | |
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alternative forms | 𥘉 𥝢 𠜆 𫢈 𢀯 𥘉 𥝢 𠜆 𫢈 𢀯 𢀰 𡔈 䥚 𠫎 𣦂 |
Glyph origin
Historical forms of the character 初 | ||||
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Shang | Western Zhou | Warring States | Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) | Liushutong (compiled in Ming) |
Oracle bone script | Bronze inscriptions | Chu slip and silk script | Small seal script | Transcribed ancient scripts |
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Ideogrammic compound (會意/会意) : 衤 (“clothes”) + 刀 (“knife; to cut”) – start making clothes by cutting the cloth.
The various 𢀰-shaped glyphs are or are evolved from Zetian characters.
Pronunciation
Definitions
初
- initial; inceptive
- 初夏 ― chūxià ― early summer
- first
- 初雪 ― chūxuě ― first snow
- 初戀/初恋 ― chūliàn ― first love
- prefix of dates from 1st to 10th in the Chinese calendar
- 初三 ― chūsān ― third day of a lunar month
- original
- 初衷 ― chūzhōng ― one’s initial intention; original idea
- elementary; basic
- 初級/初级 ― chūjí ― elementary
- beginning; start
- 四月初 ― sìyuè chū ― early April
- 民初 ― mínchū ― beginning of the Republic of China era
- just
- 初出茅廬/初出茅庐 ― chūchūmáolú ― to have just begun one's career without any experience (literally, “to have just come out of one's thatched cottage”)
- 如夢初醒/如梦初醒 ― rúmèngchūxǐng ― to suddenly realize; to wake up to reality (literally, “as if one has just waken up from a dream”)
- 遙想公瑾當年,小喬初嫁了,雄姿英發。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: 1082, Su Shi, 念奴嬌·赤壁懷古/念奴娇·赤壁怀古
- Yáoxiǎng Gōngjǐn dāngnián, Xiǎoqiáo chū jià le, xióngzīyīngfā. [Pinyin]
- (please add an English translation of this example)
遥想公瑾当年,小乔初嫁了,雄姿英发。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Compounds
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References
- “初”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database), 香港中文大學/香港中文大学 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–
Japanese
Kanji
(grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)
Readings
- Go-on: そ (so)
- Kan-on: しょ (sho, Jōyō)
- Kun: はじめ (hajime, 初め, Jōyō); はじめて (hajimete, 初めて, Jōyō); はつ (hatsu, 初, Jōyō); うい (ui, 初, Jōyō)←うひ (ufi, historical); そめる (someru, 初める, Jōyō); うぶ (ubu, 初)
- Nanori: し (shi); もと (moto)
Compounds
- 最初 (saisho)
- 初瀬 (Hase)
Etymology 1
Kanji in this term |
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初 |
はつ Grade: 4 |
kun’yomi |
⟨patu⟩ → /ɸat͡su/ → /hat͡su/
From Old Japanese.
Possible cognates include 始め (hajime, “beginning”) and 端 (ha, “edge of something”).
Pronunciation
- (Tokyo) はつ [hàtsúꜜ] (Odaka – [2])[1]
- IPA(key): [ha̠t͡sɨᵝ]
Prefix
初 • (hatsu-)
- the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
- 初雁が音 (hatsu-karigane)
- 初子 (hatsugo)
- 初恋 (hatsukoi)
- 初声 (hatsukoe)
- 初霜 (hatsushimo)
- 初誕生 (hatsutanjō)
- 初年 (hatsutoshi)
- 初月 (hatsutsuki), 初月 (hatsuzuki)
- 初夏 (hatsunatsu)
- 初音 (hatsune)
- 初花 (hatsuhana)
- 初枕 (hatsumakura)
- 初耳 (hatsumimi)
- 初宮参り (hatsu-miyamairi)
- 初物 (hatsumono)
- 初紅葉 (hatsu-momiji)
- 初雪 (hatsuyuki)
Noun
初 • (hatsu)
- a first, start, a beginning
- 今年初のコンサート ― kotoshi hatsu no konsāto ― the first concert of this year
- Antonym: 末 (sue)
- (slang) first sexual relations, one's first time
Derived terms
- 御初 (ohatsu)
- 泊瀬, 初瀬 (Hatsuse)
- 初値 (hatsune)
- 初子の日 (hatsu nenohi)
Etymology 2
Kanji in this term |
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初 |
うい Grade: 4 |
kun’yomi |
/uɸi/ → /uwi/ → /ui/
First attested in the Kokin Wakashū of roughly 905-914 CE,[2] and assumed to be inherited from Old Japanese.
There is an apparently related term 初 (ubu) of overlapping synonymous meaning, first attested in the early 1000s. It is unclear how these two terms are related: one might be a derivation of the other, or the two might derive separately via other processes.
Both ui and ubu appear to be related to verb 生む (umu, “to birth”), from the sense of "first of something since one has been born".
Martin suggests that this might be a fusion of 生む (umu, “to birth”) + 日 (hi, “day”), literally “birthday”.[3] However, the meaning of any such compound would be the noun birthday with a sense of "the day a woman gives birth" rather than "the day someone is born". Also, phonologically, this would be expected to result in ubi: /umu/ + /pi/ → /umupi/ → /umpi/ → /ubi/.
Possibly cognate with 上 (ue, “above”, possibly via the sense of "upstream → earlier") or classical verb 生ふ (ancient opu, classical ofu, modern ou, “to grow”).
Pronunciation
- (Tokyo) うい [úꜜì] (Atamadaka – [1])[1]
- IPA(key): [ɯ̟ᵝi]
Noun
初 • (ui) ←うひ (ufi)?
- [from early 900s] a first, start
Derived terms
- 初々しい (uiuishii)
- 初の子 (ui no ko)
Prefix
初 • (ui-) ←うひ (ufi)?
- [from early 900s] the first of something
Derived terms
- 初見参 (uigenzan)
- 初子 (uigo)
- 初冠 (uikōburi)
- 初心 (uigokoro)
- 初事 (uigoto)
- 初琴 (uigoto)
- 初言 (uigoto)
- 初陣 (uijin)
- 初立ち (uidachi)
- 初立つ (uidatsu)
- 初他火 (uitabi)
- 初花 (uibana)
- 初奉公 (uibōkō)
- 初枕 (uimakura)
- 初学び (uimanabi)
- 初妻 (uime)
- 初裳 (uimo)
Etymology 3
Kanji in this term |
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初 |
うぶ Grade: 4 |
kun’yomi |
Alternative spelling |
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初心 |
From stem up- cognate with ui (historical uhi) above. Cause of the shift in voicing is uncertain. (Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)
Pronunciation
- (Tokyo) うぶ [úꜜbù] (Atamadaka – [1])[1]
- IPA(key): [ɯ̟ᵝbɯ̟ᵝ]
Adjective
初 • (ubu) -na (adnominal 初な (ubu na), adverbial 初に (ubu ni))
- innocent
- inexperienced, green
Inflection
Stem forms | |||
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Imperfective (未然形) | 初だろ | うぶだろ | ubu daro |
Continuative (連用形) | 初で | うぶで | ubu de |
Terminal (終止形) | 初だ | うぶだ | ubu da |
Attributive (連体形) | 初な | うぶな | ubu na |
Hypothetical (仮定形) | 初なら | うぶなら | ubu nara |
Imperative (命令形) | 初であれ | うぶであれ | ubu de are |
Key constructions | |||
Informal negative | 初ではない 初じゃない | うぶではない うぶじゃない | ubu de wa nai ubu ja nai |
Informal past | 初だった | うぶだった | ubu datta |
Informal negative past | 初ではなかった 初じゃなかった | うぶではなかった うぶじゃなかった | ubu de wa nakatta ubu ja nakatta |
Formal | 初です | うぶです | ubu desu |
Formal negative | 初ではありません 初じゃありません | うぶではありません うぶじゃありません | ubu de wa arimasen ubu ja arimasen |
Formal past | 初でした | うぶでした | ubu deshita |
Formal negative past | 初ではありませんでした 初じゃありませんでした | うぶではありませんでした うぶじゃありませんでした | ubu de wa arimasen deshita ubu ja arimasen deshita |
Conjunctive | 初で | うぶで | ubu de |
Conditional | 初なら(ば) | うぶなら(ば) | ubu nara (ba) |
Provisional | 初だったら | うぶだったら | ubu dattara |
Volitional | 初だろう | うぶだろう | ubu darō |
Adverbial | 初に | うぶに | ubu ni |
Degree | 初さ | うぶさ | ubusa |
Derived terms
- 初い (ubui)
- 初刀 (ubugatana)
- 初声 (ubugoe)
Etymology 4
Kanji in this term |
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初 |
しょ Grade: 4 |
kan’on |
From Middle Chinese 初 (MC t͡ʃʰɨʌ).
Compare Min Nan 初 (chho͘).
Affix
初 • (sho)
- beginning, start
- first, initial
Derived terms
- 初夏 (shoka)
- 初学 (shogaku)
- 初期 (shoki)
- 初級 (shokyū)
- 初月 (shogetsu)
- 初見 (shoken)
- 初婚 (shokon)
- 初春 (shoshun)
- 初秋 (shoshū)
- 初心 (shoshin)
- 初速度 (shosokudo)
- 初代 (shodai)
- 初対面 (shotaimen)
- 初冬 (shotō)
- 初頭 (shotō)
- 初七日 (shonanuka), 初七日 (shonanoka)
- 初乳 (shonyū)
- 初任 (shonin)
- 初歩 (shoho)
- 最初 (saisho)
- 太初 (taisho)
- 当初 (tōsho)
- 年初 (nensho)
Etymology 5
Kanji in this term |
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初 |
そ(め) > ぞ(め) Grade: 4 |
kun’yomi |
For pronunciation and definitions of 初 – see the following entry. | ||
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(This term, 初, is an alternative (uncommon) spelling of the above term.) |
Etymology 6
Kanji in this term |
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初 |
はじ(め) Grade: 4 |
kun’yomi |
Nominalization of 始め (hajime, “beginning, first”).
Proper noun
初 • (Hajime)
- a male given name
References
- 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
- “初”, in 日本国語大辞典 (Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, “Nihon Kokugo Daijiten”) (in Japanese), 2nd edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, 2000, →ISBN
- Martin, Samuel E. (1987) The Japanese Language Through Time, New Haven, London: Yale University Press, →ISBN
Korean
Hanja
初 (eumhun 처음 초 (cheo'eum cho))
- Hanja form? of 초 (“beginning; start”).
Compounds
- 초등학교 (初等學校, chodeunghakgyo, “elementary school”)
- 초보자 (初步者, choboja, “beginner”)
Okinawan
Kanji
(grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)
Readings
- Kun: はじみ (hajimi, 初み); はじみてぃ (hajimiti, 初みてぃ); はち (hachi, 初); うぃー (wī, 初); すみゆん (sumiyun, 初みゆん)
Etymology
From Proto-Ryukyuan *patu.
Cognate with Japanese 初 (hatsu-).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [hat͡ɕi]
Prefix
初 (hiragana はち, rōmaji hachi-)
- the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
- 初春 (hachiharu)
- 初夏 (hachinachi)
- 初七日 (hachinanka)
- 初物 (hachimun)
Old Japanese
Etymology
From Proto-Japonic *patu.
Possible cognates include 始め (pazime, “beginning”), 僅か (patuka, “faint”), and 端 (pa, “edge of something”).
Prefix
初 (patu-) (kana はつ)
- the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
- 初秋風 (patuaki1kaze)
- 初聲 (patukowe)
- 泊瀨 (Patuse)
- 初垂り (patutari)
- 初鷹狩り (patu-to2gari)
- 初土 (patuni)
- 初子 (patune)
- 初萩 (patupagi2)
- 初花 (patupana)
- 初春 (patuparu)
- 初紅葉 (patu-momitiba)
- 初雪 (patuyuki1)
- 初麻 (patuwo)
- 初尾花 (patuwobana)
Descendants
- Japanese: 初 (hatsu-)
Vietnamese
Han character
初: Hán Việt readings: sơ (
初: Nôm readings: xưa[1][2][3][4][5], sơ[1][2][3][5], xơ[1][2][3], thơ[1][3][4], sờ[1]
- chữ Hán form of sơ (“in the initial stage; primary; elementary”).
- Nôm form of xưa (“old; ancient; a long time ago”).
Compounds
- 初級 (sơ cấp)
References
- Nguyễn (2014).
- Nguyễn et al. (2009).
- Trần (2004).
- Hồ (1976).
- Taberd & Pigneau de Béhaine (1838).