Wiktionary

初

初 U+521D, 初
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-521D
← 刜
[U+521C] 		CJK Unified Ideographs 刞 →
[U+521E]

Translingual

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Stroke order
 

Han character

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初 (Kangxi radical 18, 刀+5, 7 strokes, cangjie input 中尸竹 (LSH), four-corner 37220, composition ⿰衤刀)

Derived characters

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References

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  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 137, character 33
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 1911
  • Dae Jaweon: page 310, character 1
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 327, character 22
  • Unihan data for U+521D

Chinese

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simp. and trad.
 初
alternative forms
𥘉
𥝢
𠜆
𫢈
𢀯
𥘉
𥝢
𠜆
𫢈
𢀯
𢀰
𡔈
䥚
𠫎
𣦂
 

Glyph origin

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Historical forms of the character 初
Shang Western Zhou Warring States Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Chu slip and silk script Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts
         

Ideogrammic compound (會意 / 会意) : 衤 (“clothes”) + 刀 (“knife; to cut”) – start making clothes by cutting the cloth.

The various 𢀰-shaped glyphs are or are evolved from Zetian characters.

Pronunciation

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Note:
  • chhoe/chhe - vernacular;
  • chho͘ - literary.
Note:
  • ciu1 - only when referring to days 1-10 of the month in the Chinese calendar;
  • co1 - all other senses.
Rime
Character 初
Reading # 1/1
Initial (聲) 初 (19)
Final (韻) 魚 (22)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) III
Fanqie 楚居切
Baxter tsrhjo
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang 		/t͡ʃʰɨʌ/
Pan
Wuyun 		/ʈ͡ʂʰiɔ/
Shao
Rongfen 		/t͡ʃʰiɔ/
Edwin
Pulleyblank 		/ʈ͡ʂʰɨə̆/
Li
Rong 		/t͡ʃʰiɔ/
Wang
Li 		/t͡ʃʰĭo/
Bernhard
Karlgren 		/ʈ͡ʂʰi̯wo/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex 		chū
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex 		co1
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 初
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin) 		chū
Middle
Chinese 		‹ tsrhjo ›
Old
Chinese 		/*[ts]ʰra/
English beginning

Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system:

* Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence;
* Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p;
* Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix;
* Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary;

* Period "." indicates syllable boundary.
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character 初
Reading # 1/1
No. 1589
Phonetic
component 		初
Rime
group 		魚
Rime
subdivision 		0
Corresponding
MC rime 		初
Old
Chinese 		/*sʰra/

Definitions

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初

  1. initial; inceptive
    初夏  ―  chūxià  ―  early summer
  2. first
    初雪  ―  chūxuě  ―  first snow
    初戀／初恋  ―  chūliàn  ―  first love
  3. prefix of dates from 1st to 10th in the Chinese calendar
    初三  ―  chūsān  ―  third day of a lunar month
  4. original
    初衷  ―  chūzhōng  ―  one’s initial intention; original idea
  5. elementary; basic
    初級／初级  ―  chūjí  ―  elementary
  6. beginning; start
    四月初  ―  sìyuè chū  ―  early April
    民初  ―  mínchū  ―  beginning of the Republic of China era
  7. just
    初出茅廬／初出茅庐  ―  chūchūmáolú  ―  to have just begun one's career without any experience (literally, “to have just come out of one's thatched cottage”)
    如夢初醒／如梦初醒  ―  rúmèngchūxǐng  ―  to suddenly realize; to wake up to reality (literally, “as if one has just waken up from a dream”)

Compounds

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Descendants

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  • → Vietnamese: xưa

References

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Japanese

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Kanji

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初

(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Compounds

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Etymology 1

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Kanji in this term
初
はつ
Grade: 4
kun'yomi

⟨patu⟩ → /ɸat͡su/ → /hat͡su/

From Old Japanese.

Possible cognates include 始め (hajime, “beginning”) and 端 (ha, “edge of something”).

Pronunciation

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Prefix

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初(はつ) • (hatsu-) 

  1. the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
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Derived terms

Noun

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初(はつ) • (hatsu) 

  1. a first, start, a beginning
    Antonym: 末 (sue)
    今年(ことし)初(はつ)のコンサート ― kotoshi hatsu no konsāto ― the first concert of this year
  2. (slang) first sexual relations, one's first time
Derived terms
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Derived terms

Etymology 2

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Kanji in this term
初
うい
Grade: 4
kun'yomi

/uɸi/ → /uwi/ → /ui/

First attested in the Kokin Wakashū of roughly 905-914 CE,[2] and assumed to be inherited from Old Japanese.

There is an apparently related term 初 (ubu) of overlapping synonymous meaning, first attested in the early 1000s. It is unclear how these two terms are related: one might be a derivation of the other, or the two might derive separately via other processes.

Both ui and ubu appear to be related to verb 生む (umu, “to birth”), from the sense of "first of something since one has been born".

Martin suggests that this might be a fusion of 生む (umu, “to birth”) +‎ 日 (hi, “day”), literally “birthday”.[3] However, the meaning of any such compound would be the noun birthday with a sense of "the day a woman gives birth" rather than "the day someone is born". Also, phonologically, this would be expected to result in ubi: /umu/ + /pi/ → /umupi/ → /umpi/ → /ubi/.

Possibly cognate with 上 (ue, “above”, possibly via the sense of "upstream → earlier") or classical verb 生ふ (ancient opu, classical ofu, modern ou, “to grow”).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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初(うい) • (ui) ←うひ (ufi)?

  1. [from early 900s] a first, start
Derived terms
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Prefix

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初(うい) • (ui-) ←うひ (ufi-)?

  1. [from early 900s] the first of something
Derived terms
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Derived terms

Etymology 3

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Kanji in this term
初
うぶ
Grade: 4
kun'yomi
Alternative spelling
初心

From stem up- cognate with ui (historical uhi) above. Cause of the shift in voicing is uncertain. (Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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初(うぶ) • (ubu) -na (adnominal 初(うぶ)な (ubu na), adverbial 初(うぶ)に (ubu ni))

  1. innocent
  2. inexperienced, green
Inflection
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Inflection of 初
Stem forms
Imperfective (未然形) 初だろ うぶだろ ubu daro
Continuative (連用形) 初で うぶで ubu de
Terminal (終止形) 初だ うぶだ ubu da
Attributive (連体形) 初な うぶな ubu na
Hypothetical (仮定形) 初なら うぶなら ubu nara
Imperative (命令形) 初であれ うぶであれ ubu de are
Key constructions
Informal negative 初ではない
初じゃない 		うぶではない
うぶじゃない 		ubu de wa nai
ubu ja nai
Informal past 初だった うぶだった ubu datta
Informal negative past 初ではなかった
初じゃなかった 		うぶではなかった
うぶじゃなかった 		ubu de wa nakatta
ubu ja nakatta
Formal 初です うぶです ubu desu
Formal negative 初ではありません
初じゃありません 		うぶではありません
うぶじゃありません 		ubu de wa arimasen
ubu ja arimasen
Formal past 初でした うぶでした ubu deshita
Formal negative past 初ではありませんでした
初じゃありませんでした 		うぶではありませんでした
うぶじゃありませんでした 		ubu de wa arimasen deshita
ubu ja arimasen deshita
Conjunctive 初で うぶで ubu de
Conditional 初なら（ば） うぶなら（ば） ubu nara (ba)
Provisional 初だったら うぶだったら ubu dattara
Volitional 初だろう うぶだろう ubu darō
Adverbial 初に うぶに ubu ni
Degree 初さ うぶさ ubusa
Derived terms
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Etymology 4

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Kanji in this term
初
しょ
Grade: 4
kan'on

From Middle Chinese 初 (MC tsrhjo).

Compare Min Nan 初 (chho͘).

Affix

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初(しょ) • (sho) 

  1. beginning, start
  2. first, initial
Derived terms
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Derived terms

Etymology 5

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Kanji in this term
初
そ(め) > ぞ(め)
Grade: 4
kun'yomi
For pronunciation and definitions of 初 – see the following entry.
【初ぞめ】
[suffix] for the first time, typically in the current year
(This term, 初, is an alternative spelling (uncommon) of the above term.)

Etymology 6

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Kanji in this term
初
はじ(め)
Grade: 4
kun'yomi

Nominalization of 始め (hajime, “beginning, first”).

Proper noun

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初(はじめ) • (Hajime) 

  1. a male given name

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  2. ^ “初”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎[1] (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
  3. ^ Samuel E. Martin (1987) The Japanese Language Through Time, New Haven, London: Yale University Press, →ISBN

Korean

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Hanja

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初 (eumhun 처음 초 (cheo'eum cho))

  1. hanja form? of 초 (“beginning; start”)

Compounds

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Okinawan

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Kanji

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初

(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

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Etymology

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From Proto-Ryukyuan *patu.

Cognate with Japanese 初 (hatsu-).

Pronunciation

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Prefix

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初(はち) (hachi-) 

  1. the first..., initial..., new...

Derived terms

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Derived terms

Old Japanese

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Etymology

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From Proto-Japonic *patu.

Possible cognates include 始め (pazime, “beginning”), 僅か (patuka, “faint”), and 端 (pa, “edge of something”).

Prefix

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初 (patu-) (kana はつ)

  1. the first..., initial..., new...

Derived terms

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Derived terms

Descendants

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  • Japanese: 初 (hatsu-)

Vietnamese

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Han character

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初: Hán Việt readings: sơ (楚(sở)徂(tồ)切(thiết))[1][2][3]
初: Nôm readings: xưa[1][2][3][4][5], sơ[1][2][3][5], xơ[1][2][3], thơ[1][3][4], sờ[1]

Compounds

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Adjective

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初 • (sơ, xưa)

  1. chữ Hán form of sơ (“in the initial stage; primary; elementary”).
  2. Nôm form of xưa (“old; ancient”).

Noun

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初 • (xưa)

  1. Nôm form of xưa (“a long time ago; old times”).

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Nguyễn (2014).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Nguyễn et al. (2009).
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Trần (2004).
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Hồ (1976).
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Taberd & Pigneau de Béhaine (1838).
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