萨摩亚人 (sà mó yà rén) — Samoan (person from Samoa)

Definition

noun
Samoan (person from Samoa)
Measure word ·

Examples

  • 萨摩亚人
    Zhè wèi sà mó yà rén xiàng wǒ jiè shào le tā men de chuán tǒng wǔ dǎo.
    This Samoan introduced me to their traditional dance.
  • 萨摩亚人
    Hěn duō sà mó yà rén yǐ shàn liáng hé rè qíng zhù chēng.
    Many Samoans are known for kindness and warmth.
  • 萨摩亚人
    sà mó yà rén De chuán tǒng fú shì fēi cháng jīng měi.
    Samoan traditional clothing is very exquisite.

Origin

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.

萨摩亚Samoa
音译Transliteration
rénperson

The 萨摩亚 part spells Samoa, and 人 points to a person from there.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 萨 →

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

摩 combines 手 (hand) with 麻; the hand part relates to the meaning, and 麻 gives the sound.

Open 摩 →

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.

Open 亚 →

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

The shape of 人 shows a side view of a standing person, with an arm and a leg.

Open 人 →

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