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桑给巴尔 (Sāng jǐ bā ěr) — Zanzibar

Definition

noun
Zanzibar

Examples

  • 桑给巴尔。
    Sāng jǐ bā ěr Shì fēi zhōu zhù míng de lǚ yóu shèng dì.
    Zanzibar is a famous tourist destination in Africa.
  • 桑给巴尔。
    Tā jì huà míng nián qù Sāng jǐ bā ěr gōng zuò.
    He plans to go to Zanzibar for work next year.
  • 桑给巴尔。
    Sāng jǐ bā ěr Yǐ měi lì de shā tān hé yōu jiǔ de lì shǐ wén míng.
    Zanzibar is famous for its beautiful beaches and long history.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

桑 is a picture of a mulberry tree, with its upper part drawn as the tree's foliage.

Open 桑 →

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 給; 给 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mì
Sound part声符shēngfú
合
合hé給gěi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 給 uses 糸 (silk) for meaning and 合 for sound, and its old sense was rich, abundant, perhaps referring to precious silk; 给 is a later simplified form.

Open 给 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 巴 →

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

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 爾; 尔 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 爾, simplified as 尔, originally drew cloth on a loom with crossing threads. It was borrowed for its sound to write “you,” so the picture is unrelated to that meaning.

Open 尔 →
Appears in
Geography & Landforms

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