家史 (jiā shǐ) — family history | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

noun

family history

家史。
Tā de jiā shǐ fēi cháng fēng fù.
His family history is very rich.
家史。
Tā zhèng zài xiě yì běn guān yú jiā shǐ de shū.
She is writing a book about family history.
家史。
Yán jiū jiā shǐ xū yào hěn duō nài xīn.
Researching family history requires a lot of patience.

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.

The history (史) of a family (家).

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

宀宀miánroof

Sound part声符shēngfú

𢑓

𢑓𢑓家jiā

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

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

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

The old drawing showed someone holding a flag-like or writing tool, indicating the act of recording events; the exact inner shape is unclear.