亚裔 (yà yì) — person of Asian descent (especially living outs…

Definition

Refers to people of Asian ancestry, especially those living outside Asia. Often used in contexts of diaspora, identity, and multicultural society.

noun

person of Asian descent (especially living outside Asia)

Measure word · 个

亚裔。
yà yì Zài měi guó de rén kǒu bǐ lì zhèng zài shàng shēng.
The proportion of Asian diaspora in the United States is rising.
亚裔，。
Tā shì yí wèi zhù míng de yà yì zuò jiā, zuò pǐn guān zhù shēn fèn rèn tóng.
She is a famous Asian diaspora writer whose works focus on identity.
亚裔。
yà yì Shè qū zài duō yuán wén huà shè huì zhōng bàn yǎn zhòng yào jué sè.
The Asian diaspora community plays an important role in multicultural societies.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

裔yìdescendant

亚 refers to Asia and 裔 means descendant, so 亚裔 is a person of Asian descent.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 亞; 亚 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 亞 likely shows an overhead view of a construction, perhaps a 亞-shaped tomb. Its later simplified form 亚 is just a shorthand.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

衣衣yīcloth

Sound part声符shēngfú

㕯

吶nà裔⁰yì

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

裔 pairs 衣 (cloth) with 㕯 (also written 吶) for its sound.

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