See also:
U+7537, 男
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-7537

[U+7536]
CJK Unified Ideographs
[U+7538]
U+329A, ㊚
CIRCLED IDEOGRAPH MALE

[U+3299]
Enclosed CJK Letters and Months
[U+329B]

Translingual

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Stroke order
 
Stroke order (Japan)
 

Han character

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(Kangxi radical 102, +2, 7 strokes, cangjie input 田大尸 (WKS), four-corner 60427, composition )

Derived characters

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References

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  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 759, character 2
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 21730
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1169, character 2
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2529, character 5
  • Unihan data for U+7537

Chinese

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simp. and trad.
alternative forms

Glyph origin

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Historical forms of the character
Shang Western Zhou Spring and Autumn Warring States Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Bronze inscriptions Chu slip and silk script Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts
           

Ideogrammic compound (會意会意) : (field) + (strength) – man providing the strength for agricultural and/or other kinds of (physical) labour on a field.

Etymology

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Probably an area word. Compare Proto-Kiranti *nam (man), Proto-Monic *k()ɲoom (young child), Proto-Wa *h/ʔn[o]m (young man), Thai หนุ่ม (nùm, young man; young) (Schuessler, 2007).

Wang (1982) connects it to (OC *nuːŋ, “farmer”). Goldin (2021) suggests a connection to (OC *njɯms, “to bear; to be in charge”).

Pronunciation

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Note:
  • lam5 - Chaozhou;
  • nam5 - Shantou.

Rime
Character
Reading # 1/1
Initial () (8)
Final () (159)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division () I
Fanqie
Baxter nom
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang
/nʌm/
Pan
Wuyun
/nəm/
Shao
Rongfen
/nɒm/
Edwin
Pulleyblank
/nəm/
Li
Rong
/nᴀm/
Wang
Li
/nɒm/
Bernhard
Karlgren
/năm/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex
nán
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex
naam4
BaxterSagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin)
nán
Middle
Chinese
‹ nom ›
Old
Chinese
/*nˁ[ə]m/
English man, male

Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system:

* Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence;
* Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p;
* Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix;
* Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary;

* Period "." indicates syllable boundary.
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character
Reading # 1/1
No. 9354
Phonetic
component
Rime
group
Rime
subdivision
2
Corresponding
MC rime
Old
Chinese
/*nuːm/

Definitions

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  1. man; (only of human in Standard Chinese) male
      ―  nánrén  ―  man
      ―  nánhái  ―  boy
    Coordinate term:
  2. son
      ―  zhǎngnán  ―  eldest son
  3. baron, lowest of the five ranks of Chinese aristocracy (五等爵位) under the Zhou dynasty
  4. a surname

Synonyms

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  • (gōng, “male (of animals)”)

Compounds

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Descendants

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Sino-Xenic ():
  • Japanese: (なん) (nan); (だん) (dan)
  • Korean: 남(男) (nam)
  • Vietnamese: nam ()

References

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Japanese

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Kanji

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(First grade kyōiku kanji)

  1. man
  2. son
  3. baron

Readings

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Compounds

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Etymology 1

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Kanji in this term
おとこ
Grade: 1
kun'yomi
Alternative spelling
(manga slang)

⟨woto2ko1 → */wotəkʷo//wotoko//otoko/

From Old Japanese.

Derived from おと (oto, young?, cognate with Old Japanese 復つ (wotu → otsu, to become young again)) +‎ (ko, child).

Compare 少女 (otome, young woman).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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(おとこ) (otokoをとこ (wotoko)?

  1. a male person
    Antonym: (onna)
  2. (specifically) a man, an adult male
    Antonym: (onna)
  3. , : (specifically) a manly man
  4. a male lover
    Synonyms: 愛人 (aijin), 情人 (jōjin, jōnin), 情夫 (jōfu)
  5. a manservant
    Synonym: 下男 (genan)
  6. a husband
    Synonym: (otto)
  7. (obsolete) an unmarried young man
  8. (colloquial) homosexuality
    Synonyms: 男色 (danshoku), 若道 (nyakudō)
Derived terms
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Idioms
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Proverbs
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Proper noun

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(おとこ) (Otokoをとこ (Wotoko)?

  1. a surname

Etymology 2

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Kanji in this term

Grade: 1
kun'yomi

/wo//o/

From Old Japanese.

Alternative forms

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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() (o (wo)?

  1. a man
    Antonym: (me)
    • 711–712, Kojiki, poem 5:
      ...那許曾波(なこそは)()迩伊麻世婆(にいませば)... [Man'yōgana]
      ...()こそはにいませば... [Modern spelling]
      na koso wa o ni imaseba
      (please add an English translation of this example)
  2. a husband
    Synonym: (otto)
    Antonym: (me)
  3. a male
    Antonym: , , (me)
  4. something large, powerful, or otherwise masculine
Derived terms
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Etymology 3

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Kanji in this term
おのこ
Grade: 1
irregular
Alternative spelling
男の子

Compound of (o, male, see above) +‎ (no, possessive particle) +‎ (ko, child).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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(おのこ) (onokoをのこ (wonoko)?

  1. a boy
Derived terms
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Etymology 4

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Kanji in this term
なん
Grade: 1
goon

/nam//namʉ//naɴ/

From Middle Chinese (MC nom).

The 呉音 (goon) reading, so likely the initial borrowing.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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(なん) (nan

  1. a man
    Synonym: 男性 (dansei)
  2. a son
    Synonyms: (segare), 息子 (musuko)
Derived terms
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Etymology 5

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Kanji in this term
だん
Grade: 1
kan'on

/dam//damʉ//daɴ/

From Middle Chinese (MC nom).

The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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(だん) (dan

  1. a man
  2. a son
  3. a young man, especially one who reached adulthood
    Synonyms: 壮丁 (sōtei), 若者 (wakamono)
  4. (historical) a baron
    Synonym: 男爵 (danshaku)

Proper noun

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(だん) (Dan

  1. a male given name

References

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  1. 1.0 1.1 おと‐こ[をと‥] 【男】 ”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎[1] (in Japanese), 2nd edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2000-2002, released online 2007, →ISBN, concise edition entry available here
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. ^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN
  4. ^ お[を] 【雄・男・牡・夫】 ”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎[2] (in Japanese), 2nd edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2000-2002, released online 2007, →ISBN, concise edition entry available here
  5. 5.0 5.1 お‐の‐こ[を‥] 【男子・男】 ”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎[3] (in Japanese), 2nd edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2000-2002, released online 2007, →ISBN, concise edition entry available here
  6. 6.0 6.1 だん 【男】 ”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎[4] (in Japanese), 2nd edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2000-2002, released online 2007, →ISBN, concise edition entry available here

Korean

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Etymology

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From Middle Chinese (MC nom). Recorded as Middle Korean (nam) (Yale: nam) in Hunmong Jahoe (訓蒙字會 / 훈몽자회), 1527.

Hanja

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Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

Wikisource

(eumhun 사내 (sanae nam))

  1. hanja form? of (man)

Compounds

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References

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  • 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전/電子字典. [6]

Kunigami

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Kanji

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(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Etymology 1

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From Proto-Ryukyuan *weke + *-ga (diminutive suffix).

Noun

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(いけが) (ikhekha

  1. man

Etymology 2

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From Proto-Ryukyuan *wenga.

Noun

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(うんが) (unkha

  1. man

Okinawan

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Kanji

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(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Etymology 1

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Kanji in this term
ゐきが
Grade: 1
kun'yomi
Kanji in this term
ゆきが
Grade: 1
kun'yomi

From Proto-Ryukyuan *weke + *-ga (diminutive suffix).

Noun

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(ゐきが) or (ゆきが) (wikiga or yukiga

  1. man
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Kanji in this term
をぅとぅく
Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Possibly from Japanese (otoko, man).

Noun

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(うぅとぅく) (wutuku

  1. (literary) man

References

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  • ゐきが【男】” in JLect - Japonic Languages and Dialects Database Dictionary, 2019.

Okinoerabu

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Kanji

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(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Etymology

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Kanji in this term
いぃんが
Grade: 1
Kanji in this term
ゐんが
Grade: 1

From Proto-Ryukyuan *wenga.

Noun

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(いぃんが) or (ゐんが) (yinga or inga

  1. man

References

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Vietnamese

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Han character

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: Hán Việt readings: nam[1][2][3]
: Nôm readings: nam[1][2]

  1. chữ Hán form of nam (man; male).

Derived terms

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References

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Yonaguni

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Kanji

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(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Etymology

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From Proto-Ryukyuan *wenga.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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(びんが) (binga

  1. man

Yoron

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Kanji

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(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Etymology

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From Proto-Ryukyuan *weke + *-ga (diminutive suffix).

Noun

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(をぅいが) (ōiga

  1. man