金凤 (jīn fèng) — Jinfeng (name of a district in Yinchuan, Ningxi…

Definition

noun

Jinfeng (name of a district in Yinchuan, Ningxia)

金凤。
Wǒ zhù zài yín chuān de jīn fèng qū.
I live in Jinfeng District of Yinchuan.
金凤。
jīn fèng Shì níng xià de yí gè dì fāng.
Jinfeng is a place in Ningxia.
金凤。
Hěn duō rén qù jīn fèng lǚ yóu.
Many people go to Jinfeng for tourism.

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 name pairs 金 gold with 凤 phoenix, giving a golden phoenix image.

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.

金 was drawn with marks for two pieces of metal, along with a part that gave its sound; it first meant copper, then metals and gold.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鳳; 凤 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 鳳 pictures a bird with a prominent crest and tail feathers, likely a real peacock. The simplified 凤 is a later abbreviation.