480531170

part in ancient China, being seen as a harmonizing
influence, and featured percussion
instruments using bells hung on a frame
along with other instruments. The importance
of bells is noted by Shirakawa, who
also gives a detailed labelled sketch of a representative
ancient bell. MS1995:v2:1376-7;
OT1968:1050; SS1984:455. We suggest taking
as 77 ‘stand’ and 238 ‘village’.
Mnemonic: CHILD STANDING IN VILLAGE
RINGS A METAL BELL
Or: CHILD STANDING IN VILLAGE RINGS A
BELL FOR MONEY
1515
L1
丈
3
JŌBUrobust, sturdy
setakeone’s height
HŌJŌ ten feet square
JŌ, take
length, stature, measure
(c. 10 feet)
strokes
Seal . In one view, analyzed as consisting
of 2003 ‘hand’ (but here to be taken rather
as ‘handspan’), and 35 ‘ten’ as semantic and
phonetic, giving ‘ten handspans’ (Katō; see
895). Supposedly a linear measurement unit
of about ten feet, but some latitude needs to
be given in interpretation here: standards for
measurement varied significantly in the Zhou
Dynasty, a situation which led the self-styled
‘First Emperor’ (Shih Huangdi) of the Qin
Dynasty to standardise weights and measures.
Ogawa, alternatively, takes original meaning
as ‘hand holding a stick’ (later written
, NJK, ‘stick’), as does Gu. Mizukami lists a
proposed bronze equivalent. MS1995:v1:6-7;
KJ1970:580-81; EB1974:v23:787.
Mnemonic: HAND HOLDS A STURDY CROSS
TEN FEET TALL
Or: TEN HAND-SPANS MEASURE AROUND
TEN FEET
1516
L1
冗
JŌ
superfluous
4 strokes
JŌDANjoke
JŌCHŌverbosity
JŌGO redundant word
Seal . At seal stage, written with 30 ‘roof;
building’, plus a lower element interpreted
as either i] ‘person’ (a separate graph from
41; see 1461 Note 2), giving , or ii] 41
‘person’. Katō takes the former view, considers
the meaning in this graph to be ‘weak hunchback’
(based on word-family connection),
giving ‘weak hunchback unoccupied at home
without work’. The Shuowen seal form of this
graph does have the lower element written
with what could be interpreted as representing
a hump on the back. However, others consider
it better to take the lower element as just
‘person’. Accordingly, Gu takes it as ‘person at
leisure at home’, and Ogawa is in agreement,
saying ‘person at home without agricultural
work’; all the above scholars following the
definition of the graph in Shuowen to some
degree. The original form with appears
to have been replaced by semantically close
’cover’ after Han times; fluctuation in the
lower element continued until (in this graph
a shape distortion, probably inadvertent)
predominated, giving the shape familiar
in modern Japanese usage. Regarding other
meanings such as ‘waste, excess’, Katō regards
these as extended senses based on a person
being without work and hence unfocused, but
Ogawa regards as loan usage. DJ2009:v2:590;
KJ1970:552-3; GY2008:116; OT1968:101;
MS1995:v1:88-9,40-41. Suggest taking as a
desk, and as a cover.
Mnemonic: PUTTING A COVER ON A DESK IS
SUPERFLUOUS
The Remaining 1130 Characters 449