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See also:
U+611B, 愛
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-611B

[U+611A]
CJK Unified Ideographs
[U+611C]

Translingual[edit]

Stroke order
13 strokes

Han character[edit]

(Kangxi radical 61, +9, 13 strokes, cangjie input 月月心水 (BBPE), four-corner 20247, composition 𢖻)

Derived characters[edit]

Related characters[edit]

Descendants[edit]

References[edit]

  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 395, character 13
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 10947
  • Dae Jaweon: page 732, character 2
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2323, character 1
  • Unihan data for U+611B

Chinese[edit]

trad.
simp.
alternative forms
Wikipedia has articles on:
  • (Written Standard Chinese?)
  • (Cantonese)
  • (Classical)
  • (Gan)
  • Oi (Hakka)
  • Ái (Eastern Min)
  • Ài (Southern Min)
  • (Wu)

Glyph origin[edit]

Historical forms of the character
Warring States Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)
Bronze inscriptions Small seal script

Originally (), a phono-semantic compound (形聲形声, OC *qɯːds): phonetic (OC *kɯds) + semantic (heart).

As early as the Qin dynasty, a meaningless component (suī, foot) was added to the bottom of the character, as with some other characters depicting people. Compare (yōu) (from ).

Further corruption turned the original phonetic () into ⿱爫冖.

Etymology[edit]

Based on Baxter's (1992) Old Chinese reconstruction /*ʔɨts/, STEDT suggests that it is from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ŋ-(w)aːj (to copulate; to love; to be gentle). Compare Proto-Karen *ʔai (to love), whence Pa'o Karen [script needed] (ʔái, to love), S'gaw Karen အဲၣ် (ʼeh̀, to love); Southern Bai e⁴⁴ (love); Mizo hma-ngaih (to love, to like); Jingpho nwai (to respect, to love), ngwi (to be gentle); Burmese ငွေ့ (ngwe., to be gentle, moderate). The Chinese word is related to a Tibeto-Burman allofam without initial *ŋ-. STEDT states that an Old Chinese reconstruction of /*ʔɨjs/ for is also possible because Old Chinese rhyming does not provide direct evidence of contacts with *-t.

However, Baxter and Sagart (2014) reconstructs /*[q]ˁə[p]-s/, which ends in *-p-s instead. The Old Chinese contrast between *-p-s and *-t-s was lost at a late stage of Old Chinese. The final *-p is not reflected in the Tibeto-Burman comparandum provided by STEDT, making the likelihood that the Chinese form is related to the rest very low (Sagart, 2019). Behr (2016) suggests a derivation from a verbal root meaning "to draw in; to inhale; to suck in", relating it to (OC *qʰ(r)əp, “to inhale”), (OC *qʰˁ[ə]p, “o sip”), (OC *qʰəp-s, “to sigh with regret”), (OC *qˁəp-s, “to pant”), (OC *C.qʰəp-s, “vapour; breath”).

Pronunciation[edit]


Note: The zero initial /∅-/ is commonly pronounced with a ng-initial /ŋ-/ in some varieties of Cantonese, including Hong Kong Cantonese.
Note:
  • ái - literary;
  • ó̤i - vernacular.
  • Southern Min
  • Note: written as () for some senses.

    Rime
    Character
    Reading # 1/1
    Initial () (34)
    Final () (41)
    Tone (調) Departing (H)
    Openness (開合) Open
    Division () I
    Fanqie
    Baxter 'ojH
    Reconstructions
    Zhengzhang
    Shangfang
    /ʔʌiH/
    Pan
    Wuyun
    /ʔəiH/
    Shao
    Rongfen
    /ʔɒiH/
    Edwin
    Pulleyblank
    /ʔəjH/
    Li
    Rong
    /ʔᴀiH/
    Wang
    Li
    /ɒiH/
    Bernard
    Karlgren
    /ʔɑ̆iH/
    Expected
    Mandarin
    Reflex
    ài
    Expected
    Cantonese
    Reflex
    oi3
    BaxterSagart system 1.1 (2014)
    Character
    Reading # 1/1
    Modern
    Beijing
    (Pinyin)
    ài
    Middle
    Chinese
    ‹ ʔojH ›
    Old
    Chinese
    /*[q]ˁə[p]-s/
    English to love; to grudge (< ‘draw close to oneself’?)

    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. 1
    Phonetic
    component
    Rime
    group
    Rime
    subdivision
    1
    Corresponding
    MC rime
    Old
    Chinese
    /*qɯːds/
    Notes

    Definitions[edit]

    1. to love
        ―  àiguó  ―  to love one's country; to be patriotic
        ―  ài nǐ.  ―  I love you.
    2. to treasure; to value
      面子面子  ―  ài miànzi  ―  to be sensitive about one's reputation
    3. to like; to be fond of; to be keen on
      說話说话  ―  ài shuōhuà.  ―  He likes to talk.
      豬肉猪肉  ―  Wǒ bù ài chī zhūròu.  ―  I don't like to eat pork.
    4. to begrudge; to be reluctant
    5. to be prone; to be easy to
      發脾氣发脾气  ―  ài fāpíqì  ―  to be short-tempered
      生鏽生锈  ―  Tiě ài shēngxiù.  ―  Iron rusts easily.
    6. love; affection
    7. love; benevolence
      人間人间  ―  yí'àirénjiān  ―  to leave love behind
    8. something one loves; someone whom one loves
        ―  gē'ài  ―  to sacrifice something one loves to someone else
    9. Honorific for someone else's daughter; variant of (ài).
        ―  lìng'ài  ―  your precious daughter
    10. beloved
        ―  ài  ―  beloved wife
        ―  àijiàng  ―  beloved general
    11. (Cantonese, Hakka, Wu, Teochew) to want (an object)
      咁多咁多 [Cantonese]  ―  ngo5 m4 oi3 gam3 do1. [Jyutping]  ―  I don't want that much.
    12. (Hakka, Min) to want (to do)
    13. (Hakka, Min) to need to; must
      注意 [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
      注意 [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]
      Ū chi̍t tiám ài chù-ì--ê. [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]
      There's one thing you must bear in mind.
    14. (archaic) Alternative form of 𫉁 (ài, ài)
    15. a surname

    Usage notes[edit]

    • When used for people, usually refers to romantic love. When used like this, older Mandarin speakers often describe the use of this term as overly 肉麻 (ròumá, “overly romantic; corny; cheesy”). For this reason, the word 喜歡喜欢 (xǐhuan, “to like”) might be used instead. Using the word 喜歡喜欢 (xǐhuan) literally means like, but when used in a romantic context (especially boyfriend/girlfriend), it actually means love. Compare Japanese 好き (suki). However, younger Mandarin speakers, especially those who have been in love for some time, seem to have been influenced somewhat by Western culture, and are now using the verb much more often than was socially acceptable in the past.

    Synonyms[edit]

    • (to love): (literary, or in compounds) (liàn)
    • (to like):
    • (love):
    • (to want an object):
    • (to want to do something):

    Compounds[edit]

    Descendants[edit]

    Sino-Xenic ():
    • Japanese: (あい) (ai)
    • Korean: 애(愛) (ae)
    • Vietnamese: ái ()

    Others:

    • ? Proto-Hlai: *ʔəːp (to love)

    Further reading[edit]

    Japanese[edit]

    Kanji[edit]

    (grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)

    Readings[edit]

    Compounds[edit]

    Etymology 1[edit]

    Kanji in this term
    あい
    Grade: 4
    on’yomi

    From Middle Chinese (MC 'ojH).

    Compare modern Mandarin (ài).

    Pronunciation[edit]

    Noun[edit]

    (あい) (ai

    1. love
      (あい)(つよ)い。
      Ai wa tsuyoi.
      The love is strong.
      (あい)()つ。
      Ai wa katsu.
      The love wins.
    2. affection
      Synonym: 愛情 (aijō)
    3. tenderness
    4. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.
      Synonym: 愛想 (aiso)
    5. (Buddhism) This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.
    6. (Christianity) agape
    Synonyms[edit]
    Derived terms[edit]

    Proper noun[edit]

    (あい) (Ai

    1. a female given name
    2. a surname

    Affix[edit]

    (あい) (ai

    1. love
    2. (US) Short for 愛州 (Idaho (a state of the United States)).

    Etymology 2[edit]

    Kanji in this term
    まな
    Grade: 4
    kun’yomi
    Alternative spelling

    Originally a compound of (ma, true, genuine) +‎ (na), an Old Japanese version of modern Japanese (no, possessive particle).[3]

    The use of here is an example of ateji (当て字).

    Pronunciation[edit]

    Prefix[edit]

    (まな) (mana-

    1. before a common noun, expresses a sense of admiration or value: good, genuine; compare English the real deal
    2. before a noun describing a person, expresses praise or fondness: dear, beloved
    Derived terms[edit]

    Noun[edit]

    (まな) (mana

    1. (archaic, derived from prefix sense) something dear or loved

    Proper noun[edit]

    (まな) (Mana

    1. a female given name

    Etymology 3[edit]

    Used as nanori in various names. is a very common element in many names.

    Proper noun[edit]

    (あづみ) or (ああい) or (あゝい) or (あいか) or (あいす) or (あき) or (あこ) or (あみか) or (あおい) or (ありさ) or (あや) or (あゆ) or (ちぎり) or (ちか) or (ちかし) or (えりな) or (はあと) or (ひかり) or (いと) or (いとし) or (いつみ) or (いずみ) or (かな) or (かなえ) or (かなさ) or (きずな) or (こころ) or (こゝろ) or (このむ) or (まどか) or (まなぶ) or (まなみ) or (めづる) or (めご) or (めぐ) or (めぐみ) or (めぐむ) or (めい) or (なる) or (なるこ) or (のぞみ) or (らぶ) or (るい) or (さら) or (さらん) or (つぐみ) or (つくみ) or (うい) or (よし) or (よしき) or (よしみ) (Azumi or Āi or Aika or Aisu or Aki or Ako or Amika or Aoi or Arisa or Aya or Ayu or Chigiri or Chika or Chikashi or Erina or Hāto or Hikari or Ito or Itoshi or Itsumi or Izumi or Kana or Kanae or Kanasa or Kizuna or Kokoro or Konomu or Madoka or Manabu or Manami or Mezuru or Mego or Megu or Megumi or Megumu or Mei or Naru or Naruko or Nozomi or Rabu or Rui or Sara or Saran or Tsugumi or Tsukumi or Ui or Yoshi or Yoshiki or Yoshimi

    1. a female given name

    References[edit]

    1. ^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006) 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
    2. ^ 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), Tōkyō: NHK Publishing, →ISBN
    3. ^ 1988, 国語大辞典(新装版) (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan

    Korean[edit]

    Etymology[edit]

    From Middle Chinese (MC 'ojH).

    Historical Readings
    Dongguk Jeongun Reading
    Dongguk Jeongun, 1448 ᅙᆡᆼ〮 (Yale: qóy)
    Middle Korean
    Text Eumhun
    Gloss (hun) Reading
    Hunmong Jahoe, 1527[1] ᄃᆞᅀᆞᆯ〮 (Yale: dòzól) ᄋᆡ〯 (Yale: ǒy)

    Pronunciation[edit]

    • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ɛ(ː)] ~ [e̞(ː)]
    • Phonetic hangul: [(ː)/(ː)]
      • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

    Hanja[edit]

    Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

    Wikisource

    (eumhun 사랑 (sarang ae))

    1. Hanja form? of (love).

    Compounds[edit]

    References[edit]

    • 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전/電子字典. [2]

    Okinawan[edit]

    Kanji[edit]

    (grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)

    Readings[edit]

    Old Japanese[edit]

    Alternative forms[edit]

    Etymology[edit]

    Originally a compound of (ma, true, genuine) +‎ (na, apophonic form of possessive particle (no2)).

    Noun[edit]

    (mana) (kana まな)

    1. something dear or loved

    Derived terms[edit]

    Descendants[edit]

    • Japanese: (mana-)

    Tày[edit]

    Noun[edit]

    (ái)

    1. Nôm form of ái (to love; to want).

    Vietnamese[edit]

    Han character[edit]

    : Hán Việt readings: ái[1][2][3][4][5], áy[4]
    : Nôm readings: ái[1][2][3][4][5][6], áy[1][2][3][4][5][6], ải[1]

    1. chữ Hán form of ái (love).
    2. Nôm form of áy (troubled; anxious).

    Compounds[edit]

    References[edit]