忌辰 (jì chén) — death anniversary (of an ancestor or respected figure)

Definition

The formal, written term for the anniversary of someone's death, used in solemn or ceremonial contexts such as ancestral rites. More literary than 纪念日, which covers any commemorative day.

noun
death anniversary (of an ancestor or respected figure)

Examples

  • 忌辰，。
    Jīn tiān shì zǔ fù de jì chén, quán jiā rén dōu huí jiā jì bài.
    Today is grandfather's death anniversary; the whole family returns home to pay respects.
  • 忌辰，。
    Měi nián de jì chén, tā men huì zhǔn bèi shí wù hé xiāng lái jì niàn zǔ xiān.
    Every year on the death anniversary, they prepare food and incense to commemorate their ancestors.
  • 忌辰。
    Zhè wèi wěi rén de jì chén shì yí gè zhòng yào de jì niàn rì.
    This great person's death anniversary is an important memorial day.

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.

忌jìmourning
辰chénday

The mourning sense of 忌 and the day sense of 辰 together picture the remembered day after a death.

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
己
己jǐ忌jì
Same sound today

忌 combines 己, which gives the sound, with 心, the heart, as the part connected to the meaning.

Open 忌 →

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

The shape shows a farming tool used for tilling and weeding, possibly made from a large clam shell. It may also picture a person gripping a cliff.

Open 辰 →

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