客帮 (kè bāng) — a caravan or group of traveling merchants; an a…

Definition

Historical term for a merchant caravan or guild — traveling traders who banded together for safety and mutual support, often on long overseas routes.

noun

a caravan or group of traveling merchantsan association of merchants working abroad

客帮，。
Gǔ dài de kè bāng cháng cháng jié duì ér xíng, hù xiāng zhào yìng.
In ancient times, merchant caravans often traveled in groups and looked out for each other.
客帮，。
Zhè ge kè bāng zài hǎi wài jīng yíng duō nián, jī lěi le fēng fù de jīng yàn.
This association of merchants has operated abroad for many years, accumulating rich experience.
，客帮。
Míng qīng shí qī, xǔ duō kè bāng cóng fú jiàn chū fā qián wǎng dōng nán yà.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, many merchant caravans set out from Fujian for Southeast Asia.

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.

客kèoutsider

客 points to outsiders or guests, and 帮 is a group, so the word means a traveling merchant group.

Characters in this word

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

宀各客

Meaning part形符xíngfú

宀宀miánroof

Sound part声符shēngfú

各

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 客, 宀 is a roof and 各 gives the sound; the character meant a guest.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 幫; 帮 is its simplified writing.

封帛幫

Meaning part形符xíngfú

帛帛bósilk

Sound part声符shēngfú

封

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

In 帮's traditional form 幫, 帛 (silk) gives the meaning and 封 gives the sound; it originally named the upper part of a shoe.