CJK (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) Symbols: Radicals: ⼀, ⼁,⼂

Ever wondered how to navigate thousands of characters in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean? Enter radicals, the essential building blocks that unlock these intricate writing systems.

What are radicals?

Think of radicals like Lego bricks for CJK characters. These fundamental graphical elements often hold meaning or pronunciation clues. By understanding radicals, you’ll gain a deeper grasp of character structure and make dictionary use a breeze.

A Glimpse into Each Language:

• Chinese (漢字): Radicals (部首 bùshǒu) act as the foundation for character organization in dictionaries. They provide insights into meaning, like 日 (rì, sun), 木 (mù, tree), and 心 (xīn, heart).

一

丨

丶

丿

乙

亅

二

亠

人

儿

入

八

冂

冖

冫

几

凵

刀

力

勹

匕

匚

匸

十

卜

卩

厂

厶

又

口

囗

土

士

夂

夊

夕

大

女

子

宀

寸

小

尢

尸

屮

山

巛

工

己

巾

干

幺

广

廴

廾

弋

弓

彐

彡

彳

心

戈

戶

手

支

攴

文

斗

斤

方

无

日

曰

月

木

欠

止

歹

殳

比

毛

氏

气

水

火

爪

父

爻

爿

片

牙

牛

犬

玄

玉

瓜

瓦

甘

生

用

• Japanese (漢字): Similar to Chinese, radicals (部首 bushu) guide you through Kanji dictionaries. They categorize characters based on their components, including familiar examples like 日 (にち, nichi, sun), 木 (もく, moku, tree), and 心 (しん, shin, heart).

一

丨

丶

丿

乙

亅

二

亠

人

儿

入

八

冂

冖

冫

几

凵

刀

力

勹

匕

匚

匸

十

卜

卩

厂

厶

又

口

• Korean (ハングル): Unlike Chinese and Japanese, Korean uses a phonetic alphabet called Hangul (한글). Hangul characters are built from jamo (자모), basic phonetic units, instead of radicals. Jamo come in consonants, vowels, and even double consonants and vowels! Here’s a glimpse into jamo:
  • Consonants (자음, Jaeum):

ㄱ

ㄴ

ㄷ

ㄹ

ㅁ

ㅂ

ㅅ

ㅇ

ㅈ

ㅊ

ㅋ

ㅌ

ㅍ

ㅎ

• • Vowels (모음, Moeum):

ㅏ

ㅑ

ㅓ

ㅕ

ㅗ

ㅛ

ㅜ

ㅠ

ㅡ

ㅣ

• • Double Consonants (겹자음, Gyeop Jaeum):

ㄲ

ㄸ

ㅃ

ㅆ

ㅉ

• • Double Vowels (겹모음, Gyeop Moeum):

ㅐ

ㅔ

ㅖ

ㅒ

ㅙ

ㅞ

Radicals: Your Key to Mastering CJK Characters

• By mastering radicals, you’ll:
  • Decode Characters: Break down complex characters into their building blocks.
  • Boost Learning: Enhance your character memorization and understanding.
  • Navigate Dictionaries: Find characters efficiently with radical-based lookup systems.

So, the next time you encounter a puzzling CJK character, remember the power of radicals! They’ll be your guide to unlocking the beauty and depth of these fascinating writing systems.

Explore CJK Symbols: Korean Ideograms for more language symbols.