西

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See also: 四, 𠁤, 酉, 襾, and 覀
西 U+897F, 西
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-897F
← 襾
[U+897E] 		CJK Unified Ideographs 覀 →
[U+8980]
⻄ U+2EC4, ⻄
CJK RADICAL WEST TWO
← ⻃
[U+2EC3] 		CJK Radicals Supplement ⻅ →
[U+2EC5]

Translingual

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Stroke order
6 strokes
Stroke order

Han character

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See images of
Radical 146 西

西 (Kangxi radical 146, 襾+0, 6 strokes, cangjie input 一金田 (MCW), four-corner 10600, composition ⿱一𠁤)

Derived characters

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References

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  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 1128, character 10
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 34763
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1595, character 19
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2805, character 2
  • Unihan data for U+897F

Chinese

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Glyph origin

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Historical forms of the character 西
Shang Western Zhou Warring States Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Bronze inscriptions Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Bronze inscriptions Chu slip and silk script Qin slip script Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts
Characters in the same phonetic series (西) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
粞 *sɯːl, *sɯːl
洒 *sraːls, *sɯːlʔ
西 *sɯːl
卤 *sɯːl
卥 *sɯːl
栖 *sɯːl, *sɯːls
茜 *sʰɯːns
哂 *hjɯnʔ

Pictogram (象形) – a bag or basket, borrowed for phonetic value. Compare 東 (OC *toːŋ, “bundle > east”), 束 and 鹵. Traditionally explained as a pictogram of a bird settling into its nest, which by analogy with the setting of the sun means “west”. This etymology has been disputed (Sears), but Sagart (2004) stands by it.

See also the top component of 票, originally two hands holding an object vaguely similar to a bag, basket or nest.

Etymology 1

[edit]
simp. and trad.
 西
alternative forms 㢴
卤

The word is traditionally reconstructed to have a /*s/-initial in Old Chinese, e.g. /*sɯːl/ in Zhengzhang (2003). However, recent scholarship has suggested that the Old Chinese initial should instead be reconstructed as /*s-nˤ/, one of the reasons being 西 appears to be the phonetic in 迺 (nǎi), the archaic graphic variant of 乃 (OC *nɯːʔ). The new reconstruction, /*s-nˤər/ in Baxter and Sagart (2014), also accounts for how 西 can be the phonetic in 哂 (shěn, “to smile”). For more information, see Sagart (2004), Baxter and Sagart (2014) and Nohara (2018).

In light of the new construction with the initial consonant cluster /*s-nˤ/, the possibilities of the etymology of 西, aside from being cognate with 棲／栖 (qī, “to roost; to rest”) (B-S OC /*s-nˤər/), include:

Pronunciation

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Note:
  • sai1 - vernacular;
  • se1 - literary.
Note:
  • sai - vernacular;
  • se - literary;
  • si - vernacular (limited, e.g. 西瓜 (si-koe)).
Note:
  • sai - literary;
  • si1 - vernacular (for 西瓜).
  • Dialectal data
Variety Location 西
Mandarin Beijing /ɕi⁵⁵/
Harbin /ɕi⁴⁴/
Tianjin /ɕi²¹/
Jinan /ɕi²¹³/
Qingdao /si²¹³/
Zhengzhou /si²⁴/
Xi'an /ɕi²¹/
Xining /ɕji⁴⁴/
Yinchuan /ɕi⁴⁴/
Lanzhou /ɕi³¹/
Ürümqi /ɕi⁴⁴/
Wuhan /ɕi⁵⁵/
Chengdu /ɕi⁵⁵/
Guiyang /ɕi⁵⁵/
Kunming /ɕi⁴⁴/
Nanjing /si³¹/
Hefei /sz̩²¹/
Jin Taiyuan /ɕi¹¹/
Pingyao /ɕi¹³/
/sei¹³/ ～瓜
Hohhot /ɕi³¹/
Wu Shanghai /ɕi⁵³/
Suzhou /si⁵⁵/
Hangzhou /ɕi³³/
Wenzhou /sei³³/
Hui Shexian /si³¹/
Tunxi /se¹¹/
Xiang Changsha /si³³/
Xiangtan /si³³/
Gan Nanchang /ɕi⁴²/
Hakka Meixian /si⁴⁴/
Taoyuan /si²⁴/
Cantonese Guangzhou /sɐi⁵³/
Nanning /ɬɐi⁵⁵/
Hong Kong /sɐi⁵⁵/
Min Xiamen (Hokkien) /se⁵⁵/
/sai⁵⁵/ 東～
/si⁵⁵/ ～瓜
Fuzhou (Eastern Min) /sɛ⁴⁴/
Jian'ou (Northern Min) /sai⁵⁴/
/si⁵⁴/
Shantou (Teochew) /si³³/
/sai³³/
Haikou (Hainanese) /si²³/
/tai²³/
Rime
Character 西
Reading # 1/1
Initial (聲) 心 (16)
Final (韻) 齊 (39)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) IV
Fanqie 先稽切
Baxter sej
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang 		/sei/
Pan
Wuyun 		/sei/
Shao
Rongfen 		/sɛi/
Edwin
Pulleyblank 		/sɛj/
Li
Rong 		/sei/
Wang
Li 		/siei/
Bernard
Karlgren 		/siei/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex 		xī
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex 		sai1
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 西
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin) 		xī
Middle
Chinese 		‹ sej ›
Old
Chinese 		/*s-nˁər/
English west

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 西
Reading # 1/1
No. 13236
Phonetic
component 		西
Rime
group 		微
Rime
subdivision 		1
Corresponding
MC rime 		西
Old
Chinese 		/*sɯːl/

Definitions

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西

  1. west; western
  2. (Cantonese, minced oath) Euphemistic form of 閪／𲈹 (hai1).
    西人 [Cantonese]  ―  sai1 jan4 [Jyutping]  ―  cunt; jerk
    西客 [Cantonese]  ―  sai1 haak3 [Jyutping]  ―  bad customer
    西口西面 [Cantonese]  ―  sai1 hau2 sai1 min6 [Jyutping]  ―  bitch-face
Coordinate terms
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西北 (xīběi) 北 東北／东北 (dōngběi)
西 (xī) 東／东 (dōng)
西南 (xīnán) 南 東南／东南 (dōngnán)


Compounds

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Descendants

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Sino-Xenic (西):
  • → Japanese: 西(さい) (sai); 西(せい) (sei)
  • → Korean: 서(西) (seo)
  • → Vietnamese: tây (西)

Others:

Etymology 2

[edit]
simp. and trad.
 西
alternative forms 篩／筛

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “From English side?”)

Pronunciation

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Definitions

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西 (Cantonese)

  1. spin (noun)
    腳趾尾拉西／脚趾尾拉西 [Cantonese]  ―  goek3 zi2 mei5-1 laai1 sai1 [Jyutping]  ―  to do a sidespin with one's little toe
  2. to spin; to cause to spin
  3. carrying spin
  4. to deviate from a path due to some force
  5. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.
    架車轉彎嗰陣好西。 [Cantonese, trad.]
    架车转弯嗰阵好西。 [Cantonese, simp.]
    gaa3 ce1 zyun3 waan1 go2 zan6-2 hou2 sai1. [Jyutping]
    There was strong centrifugal force when the vehicle turned.
  6. to hit (clarification of this definition is needed)
    一嘢西落佢度 [Cantonese, trad. and simp.]
    jat1 je5 sai1 lok6 keoi5 dou6 [Jyutping]
    (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Compounds

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Japanese

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Kanji

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西

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

  1. west
  2. Europe, European
  3. kanji used to transliterate foreign languages
  4. Short for 西班牙 (Supein): Spain, Spanish
  5. autumn

Readings

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Compounds

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Compounds

Etymology 1

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Kanji in this term
西
にし
Grade: 2
kun'yomi

Originally a compound of 去に (ini, “going away”, the 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 去(い)ぬ (inu, “to go away”)) +‎ し (shi, “wind; (by extension) direction”, as seen in other ancient-derived words as 嵐 (arashi, “storm”, literally “wild + wind”), 旋風 (tsumuji, “whirlwind”), 東 (higashi, “east”, from older pi muka si, literally “sun + facing + wind/direction”)).[1]

First cited in the Kojiki of 712, with the phonetic spelling 爾斯 (nisi).[1]

Pronunciation

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Noun

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西(にし) • (nishi) 

  1. [from 770] west (one of the four cardinal directions)
    Antonym: 東 (higashi)
  2. the West
  3. [from 712] the west wind, wind blowing from the west
    Antonym: 東 (higashi)
  4. (theater) in kabuki:
    1. [from 1688] the left side of the stage in the Edo-style
    2. [from 1688] the right side of the stage in Kyoto and Osaka styles
  5. [date uncertain] (sumo) lower-ranked wrestlers listed on the left side of a banzuke
    Antonym: 東 (higashi)
  6. [from 1885] the West; (later, more specifically) the capitalist states of the West (originally western Europe, as opposed to Eastern Bloc countries)
    Synonym: 西側 (nishigawa)
    Antonym: 東 (higashi)
Coordinate terms
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  • (compass points) 方角 (hōgaku);
北西 (hokusei)
西北 (seihoku) 		北 (kita) 北東 (hokutō)
東北 (tōhoku)
西 (nishi) 東 (higashi)
西南 (seinan)
南西 (nansei) 		南 (minami) 東南 (tōnan)
南東 (nantō)


Derived terms
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Derived terms
Idioms
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Proverbs
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Idioms

Proper noun

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西(にし) • (Nishi) 

  1. (Buddhism) Synonym of 西方浄土 (Saihō Jōdo): the western paradise of Amitabha Buddha
  2. (Buddhism) Short for 西本願寺 (Nishi Hongan-ji): a Buddhist temple in Kyoto
    Synonym: お西 (o-Nishi)
  3. (historical) a red-light district in Edo-period Shinjuku (as it was located west of Edo Castle)
  4. a place name, especially the name of various wards in major cities throughout Japan
  5. a surname

Etymology 2

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Kanji in this term
西
しゃー
Grade: 2
irregular

Possibly a corruption of Mandarin 西 (xī, “west”).

Noun

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西(シャー) • (shā) 

  1. (mahjong) west wind (mahjong tile)
    Hypernym: 風牌 (kazehai, fanpai)
  2. (mahjong) a 役 (yaku, “winning hand”) with a triplet or quad of west wind tiles; depending on wind round and player's seat wind, it is worth either 1 or 2 翻 (han, “doubles”)
    Hypernym: 役牌 (yakuhai, yaku-pai)
See also
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References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 “西”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎[1] (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
  2. ^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. ^ Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  4. ^ 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

Korean

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Etymology

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From Middle Chinese 西 (MC sej).

Historical Readings
Dongguk Jeongun Reading
Dongguk Jeongun, 1448 솅 (Yale: syèy)
Middle Korean
Text Eumhun
Gloss (hun) Reading
Hunmong Jahoe, 1527[3] 셧녁 (Yale: syè-s-nyèk) 셔 (Yale: syè)

Pronunciation

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Hanja

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Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

Wikisource

西 (eumhun 서녘 서 (seonyeok seo))

  1. hanja form? of 서 (“west; western”)

Compounds

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Compounds

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. [4]

Okinawan

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Kanji

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西

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Noun

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西(いり) (iri) 

  1. the West

Compounds

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Vietnamese

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Han character

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西: Hán Việt readings: tây, tê
西: Nôm readings: tây

  1. west
  2. West (the Western world)

Compounds

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References

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  • Thiều Chửu : Hán Việt Tự Điển Hà Nội 1942
  • Trần Văn Chánh: Từ Điển Hán Việt NXB Trẻ, Ho Chi Minh Ville, 1999
  • Vũ Văn Kính: Đại Tự Điển Chữ Nôm, NXB Văn Nghệ, Ho Chi Minh Ville, 1999
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