Wiktionary

天

See also: 夫, 禾, 末, 未, 夭, and 无
天 U+5929, 天
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5929
← 夨
[U+5928] 		CJK Unified Ideographs 太 →
[U+592A]

Translingual edit

Stroke order
 

Han character edit

天 (Kangxi radical 37, 大+1, 4 strokes, cangjie input 一大 (MK), four-corner 10430, composition ⿱一大)

Derived characters edit

Descendants edit

References edit

  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 248, character 4
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 5833
  • Dae Jaweon: page 500, character 2
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 522, character 1
  • Unihan data for U+5929

Chinese edit

simp. and trad.
 天
alternative forms
 
𠀘
𠀡
𠑺
兲
𠕹
𠀘
𠀡
𠑺
兲
𠕹
㕦
䒶
𦴞
𩇗
𩇞
靝／靔 Taoist
𠀑
𬻃
 
The sky over Guangdong.
 
The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing's Temple of Heaven.
 
Wikipedia has articles on:
  • 天 (Written Standard Chinese?)
  • 天 (Cantonese)
  • Tian (English)

Glyph origin edit

Historical forms of the character 天
Shang Western Zhou Spring and Autumn Warring States Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Bronze inscriptions Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Bronze inscriptions Chu slip and silk script Qin slip script Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts
                   
Characters in the same phonetic series (天) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
添 *tʰiːm
忝 *l̥ʰiːmʔ, *l̥ʰiːms
悿 *tʰiːmʔ
舔 *l̥ʰiːmʔ
菾 *diːm
天 *qʰl'iːn
吞 *qʰl'iːn, *qʰl'ɯːn
祆 *qʰliːn
蚕 *zluːm, *hl'iːnʔ

A top line representing the level above a man with outstretched arms (大 (dà)). Ancient representations of the character depicted a man with a large head, an anthropomorphic representation of heaven.

Original meaning of the word is “sky”. Such concept is difficult to depict with a pictogram, hence the current form. Perhaps influenced by the glyph, the character was frequently glossed in Old Chinese documents with 顛 (“crown of the head”), and such had led to incorrect hypotheses which regarded 天 (tiān) as a derivation of 顛 or 巔, “top (of the head/hill)”.

Etymology edit

This character was previously reconstructed to have a /*tʰ/-initial in Old Chinese, but this hypothesis has been largely discounted in recent reconstructions, in light of evidence from early Chinese accounts of dialectal pronunciations, transcription of other languages, as well as cognate/derived characters within Chinese, which has all pointed to a voiceless resonant initial /*l̥-/ in Old Chinese. According to chapter 1 of Shiming, by c. 200 CE, this initial had already produced dialectal variation in the pronunciation: People in central-western China pronounced it with the back of the tongue, like 顯 (MC xenX), while people in eastern China pronounced it with the tip of the tongue, like 坦 (MC thanX). An old northwestern dialect variant survives as 祆 (MC xen, “God of the Zoroastrians”), and the word 天竺 (MC then trjuwk, “India”) was used to transcribe Old Persian *Hind-uka ("India").

Further etymology is unknown. During the time when this term was reconstructed with a /*tʰ-/ initial, it was frequently compared with tengri, the name for God in early Turkic and Mongolic peoples' languages. This now appears unlikely. The only certain external cognate is the Central Bai (a language closely related to Chinese) word heinl (“sky, heaven”) /xẽ⁵⁵/. Chen (1998) proposes cognation with 祁連 (OC *g'ieg-lian) and 赫連 (OC *khak-lian), transcriptions of a Xiongnu word for "sky", which he also relates to 昊天 (OC *g'ôg-hlin).

Pronunciation edit

Note:
  • thiⁿ - vernacular;
  • thian/then - literary.
Note:
  • tin1 - vernacular;
  • tiêng1/tiang1 - literary (tiêng1 - Chaozhou).
    • (Leizhou)
      • Leizhou Pinyin: ti1 / tieng1
      • Sinological IPA: /tʰi³⁵/, /tʰieŋ³⁵/
Note:
  • ti1 - vernacular;
  • tieng1 - literary.
Rime
Character 天
Reading # 1/1
Initial (聲) 透 (6)
Final (韻) 先 (85)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) IV
Fanqie 他前切
Baxter then
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang 		/tʰen/
Pan
Wuyun 		/tʰen/
Shao
Rongfen 		/tʰɛn/
Edwin
Pulleyblank 		/tʰɛn/
Li
Rong 		/tʰen/
Wang
Li 		/tʰien/
Bernard
Karlgren 		/tʰien/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex 		tiān
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex 		tin1
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 天 天
Reading # 1/2 2/2
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin) 		tiān xiān
Middle
Chinese 		‹ then › ‹ xen ›
Old
Chinese 		/*l̥ˁi[n]/ /*l̥ˁi[n]/ (W dialect: l̥ˁ- > Hàn-time *xˁ- > MC x-)
English heaven heaven

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 天
Reading # 1/1
No. 12387
Phonetic
component 		天
Rime
group 		眞
Rime
subdivision 		1
Corresponding
MC rime 		天
Old
Chinese 		/*qʰl'iːn/

Definitions edit

天

  1. sky; heavens; heavenly; celestial
    天空  ―  tiānkōng  ―  sky
    天黑了。  ―  Tiān hēi le.  ―  It's getting dark. (lit. The sky is becoming black)
  2. (mythology or religion) heaven as the abode of the gods or the blessed departed; heavenly
    上天  ―  shàngtiān  ―  to go up to the sky; to go to heaven
    天意  ―  tiānyì  ―  Heaven's will
  3. (mythology or religion) Heaven as an impersonal deity; often translated as God
    天主  ―  tiānzhǔ  ―  God (in the Catholic tradition)
    老天  ―  lǎotiān  ―  Heaven, Tian; God (Deity of the Zhou)
    我的天啊！  ―  Wǒ de tiān a!  ―  Oh my God!
    天助自助者。  ―  Tiān zhù zì zhù zhě.  ―  God helps those who help themselves.
  4. top; overhead
    天橋／天桥  ―  tiānqiáo  ―  footbridge
    天窗  ―  tiānchuāng  ―  sunroof
  5. weather; climate
    天很冷。  ―  Tiān hěn lěng.  ―  It's very cold.
    如果天晴，我們就去散步。 [MSC, trad.]
    如果天晴，我们就去散步。 [MSC, simp.]
    Rúguǒ tiān qíng, wǒmen jiù qù sànbù. [Pinyin]
    If the weather clears, we'll go for a walk.
  6. day (24 hours)
    今天  ―  jīntiān  ―  today
    明天  ―  míngtiān  ―  tomorrow
    三天  ―  sān tiān  ―  three days
  7. day (as opposed to night)
    白天  ―  báitiān  ―  daytime
    三天兩夜／三天两夜  ―  sān tiān liǎng yè  ―  three days and two nights
  8. period of time in a day
    五更天  ―  wǔgèngtiān  ―  just before dawn
    天不早了。  ―  Tiān bù zǎo le.  ―  It's getting late.
  9. season
    春天、夏天、秋天、冬天 [MSC, trad. and simp.]
    chūntiān, xiàtiān, qiūtiān, dōngtiān [Pinyin]
    spring, summer, autumn, winter
    黃梅天／黄梅天  ―  huángméitiān  ―  rainy season
  10. nature
    天災／天灾  ―  tiānzāi  ―  natural disaster
  11. natural; innate
    天生  ―  tiānshēng  ―  innate
    天性  ―  tiānxìng  ―  nature, personality
    天才  ―  tiāncái  ―  genius
  12. (Hong Kong) Short for 天水圍／天水围 (Tiānshuǐwéi, “Tin Shui Wai”).

Synonyms edit

Dialectal synonyms of 天空 (“sky”) [map]
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 天
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 天, 天空
Mandarin Xi'an 天
Singapore 天
Cantonese Guangzhou 天
Hong Kong 天
Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou) 天
Macau 天
Guangzhou (Panyu) 天
Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu) 天
Guangzhou (Conghua) 天
Guangzhou (Zengcheng) 天
Foshan 天
Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai) 天
Foshan (Shunde) 天
Foshan (Sanshui) 天空
Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming) 天空
Zhongshan (Shiqi) 天
Zhuhai (Qianshan) 天
Zhuhai (Doumen, Shangheng Tanka) 天
Zhuhai (Doumen) 天
Jiangmen (Baisha) 天
Jiangmen (Xinhui) 天
Taishan 天
Taishan (Guanghai) 天
Kaiping (Chikan) 天
Enping (Niujiang) 天
Heshan (Yayao) 天空
Dongguan 天
Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an) 天空
Lianshan (Yonghe) 天
Pingnan (Danzhu) 天
Chongzuo (Laituan) 天
Fusui (Qujiu) 天
Singapore (Guangfu) 天
Mandalay (Taishan) 天
Gan Nanchang 天
Hakka Meixian 天
Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua) 天, 天空
Huizhou (Shuikou Bendihua) 天
Huizhou (Hengli Bendihua) 天
Huidong (Pingshan Bendihua) 天
Dongguan (Qingxi) 天頂
Longmen (Pingling Bendihua) 天
Longmen (Luxi Bendihua) 天
Boluo (Bendihua) 天
Shenzhen (Shatoujiao) 天空
Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui) 天
Heyuan (Bendihua) 天
Zijin (Guzhu Bendihua) 天
Longchuan (Tuocheng Bendihua) 天
Longchuan (Sidu Bendihua) 天
Heping (Linzhai Bendihua) 天
Lianping (Zhongxin Bendihua) 天
Lianping (Longjie Bendihua) 天
Xinfeng (Matou Bendihua) 天
Xinfeng (Daxi Bendihua) 天
Conghua (Lütian) 天空
Eastern Min Fuzhou 天
Southern Min Xiamen 天
Singapore (Hokkien) 天
Manila (Hokkien) 天, 天頂
Singapore (Teochew) 天
Zhongshan Min Shaxi (Longdu) 天
Southern Pinghua Nanning (Sucun) 天
Wu Shanghai 天
Suzhou 天
Wenzhou 天
Jinhua 天公, 天
Xiang Changsha 天
Xiangxiang 天
Hengshan 天
Dialectal synonyms of 天氣 (“weather”) [map]
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 氣候, 天景, 氣
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 天氣
Mandarin Beijing 天氣, 天兒
Taiwan 天氣
Tianjin 天兒
Tangshan 天氣, 天頭
Cangzhou 天氣
Baoding 天氣, 天道
Shijiazhuang 天氣
Ulanhot 天頭
Tongliao 天頭
Chifeng 天氣
Bayanhot 天氣
Hulunbuir (Hailar) 天氣
Harbin 天氣, 天兒, 天
Shenyang 天氣, 天頭
Yantai (Muping) 天氣
Qingdao 天氣, 天兒
Jinan 天氣, 天兒
Luoyang 天氣
Wanrong 天氣
Zhengzhou 天氣
Xi'an 天氣
Dingbian 天, 天氣
Yinchuan 天氣
Lanzhou 天氣
Xining 天氣, 天氣兒
Ürümqi 天氣, 天
Wuhan 天氣, 天道
Huanggang 天頭
Chengdu 天氣
Guiyang 天氣
Kunming 天氣
Guilin 天氣
Guilin (Lingui) 天氣
Pingle 天氣
Liuzhou 天氣, 天時
Liuzhou (Luorong) 天氣
Luzhai 天氣
Nanning (Wuming) 天氣, 天色
Yizhou 天氣, 天時
Luocheng (Dongmen) 天氣
Tianlin (Langping) 天氣
Xuzhou 天氣, 天
Yangzhou 天氣, 天
Nanjing 天氣, 天
Hefei 天氣
Nantong 天氣
Qimen (Anling Junhua) 天氣
Malaysia 天氣
Singapore 天氣
Sokuluk (Gansu Dungan) 天氣
Masanchin (Shaanxi Dungan) 天氣
Mae Salong (Lancang) 天氣, 天時
Mae Sai (Tengchong) 天氣
Oudomxay 天氣
Pematangsiantar 天氣
Cantonese Guangzhou 天氣, 天時, 天候
Hong Kong 天氣, 天時, 天候
Hong Kong (San Tin Weitou) 天候, 天時
Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou) 天時, 天氣
Hong Kong (Ting Kok) 天時
Hong Kong (Tung Ping Chau) 天時
Macau 天氣
Guangzhou (Panyu) 天時
Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu) 天氣
Guangzhou (Conghua) 天時
Guangzhou (Zengcheng) 天氣
Foshan 天時
Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai) 天時
Foshan (Shunde) 天氣
Foshan (Sanshui) 天氣
Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming) 天氣
Zhongshan (Shiqi) 天時
Zhongshan (Chongkoumen Tanka) 天氣
Zhuhai (Qianshan) 天時
Zhuhai (Doumen, Shangheng Tanka) 天時
Zhuhai (Doumen) 天時
Jiangmen (Baisha) 天時
Jiangmen (Xinhui) 天時
Taishan 天時, 天氣
Taishan (Guanghai) 天氣
Kaiping (Chikan) 天時
Enping (Niujiang) 天時
Heshan (Yayao) 天氣
Dongguan 天時, 天氣
Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an) 天時
Qingyuan 天時
Fogang 天時
Yingde (Hanguang) 天時
Yangshan 天氣
Lianshan (Butian) 天氣
Lianzhou (Qingshui Sihui) 天氣
Shaoguan 天時
Shaoguan (Qujiang) 天候, 天氣
Renhua 天時
Lechang 天氣
Zhaoqing (Gaoyao) 天氣
Sihui 天時
Guangning 天時
Deqing 天時, 天氣
Huaiji 天時
Fengkai (Nanfeng) 天氣
Yunfu 天氣
Xinxing 天時
Luoding 天時
Yunan (Pingtai) 天氣
Yangjiang 天時, 天氣
Xinyi 天氣
Lianjiang 天氣
Nanning 天氣
Wuzhou 天氣
Yulin 天氣
Hepu (Lianzhou) 天時, 天氣
Hepu (Shatian) 天時
Guiping 天氣
Guiping (Jintian) 天氣
Guiping (Jiangkou) 天氣, 天時, 天色
Guiping (Madong) 天氣, 天色
Mengshan (Xihe) 天色
Guigang (Nanjiang) 天氣
Beiliu 天氣, 天色
Beiliu (Tangliao) 天色
Baise 天氣
Bobai 天氣
Lingshan 天氣
Pubei 天氣
Qinzhou 天氣
Beihai 天氣, 天時
Beihai (Nankang) 天時
Beihai (Yingpan) 天時
Beihai (Qiaogang - Cô Tô) 天氣, 天時
Beihai (Qiaogang - Cát Bà) 天氣, 天時
Ningming 天氣
Hengzhou 天氣
Hezhou (Pumen) 天氣
Fangchenggang (Fangcheng) 天氣, 天時
Lingchuan (Yangjia) 天時
Pingle (Majia) 天氣
Pingle (Shuishan) 天氣
Danzhou 天
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) 天時, 天氣
Ho Chi Minh City (Guangfu) 天時
Móng Cái 天氣, 天時
Yangon (Taishan) 天氣, 氣候
Mandalay (Taishan) 天氣
Bangkok (Guangfu) 天時
Gan Nanchang 天氣, 天色
Pengze 天勢
Lichuan 天氣, 天頭
Pingxiang 天, 天氣
Hakka Meixian 天氣, 天色, 天時
Xingning 天時
Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua) 天時
Huidong (Daling) 天時
Dongguan (Qingxi) 天時
Shenzhen (Shatoujiao) 天時
Zengcheng (Zhengguo) 天時
Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui) 天時
Shaoguan (Qujiang) 天時
Lianshan (Xiaosanjiang) 天時
Conghua (Lütian) 天氣
Changting 天時
Wuping 天時
Wuping (Pingyu) 天時
Liancheng 天時
Liancheng (Peitian) 天意
Yudu 天氣
Ruijin 天氣
Shicheng 天頭
Shangyou (Shexi) 天色
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 天時, 天氣
Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian) 天時, 天氣
Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu) 天時, 天氣
Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu) 天時, 天氣
Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping) 天時, 天氣
Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an) 天氣
Hong Kong 天時
Luchuan (Daqiao) 天氣
Bobai (Shahe) 天氣
Bobai (Longtan) 天氣
Bobai (Lingping) 天氣, 天時
Beiliu (Tang'an) 天時
Beiliu (Gonghe, Xilang) 天氣
Mashan (Pianlian) 天氣
Guilin (Xiaojiang, Lingui) 天氣
Pingle (Tong'an) 天氣
Yangshuo (Jinbao) 天氣
Sabah (Longchuan) 天時
Senai (Huiyang) 天時
Singkawang 天時, 天氣
Pontianak (Meixian) 天時, 天氣
Bangkok (Meixian) 天時
Bangkok (Fengshun) 天氣
Bangkok (Jiexi) 天時
Huizhou Jixi 天公
Shexian 天氣
Shexian (Xianggao) 天氣
Shexian (Daguyun) 天氣
Qimen (Anling Minhua) 天氣
Jin Taiyuan 天氣, 天
Datong 天氣
Datong (Xicetian, Yunzhou) 天氣
Xinzhou 天氣
Changzhi 天氣
Taibus (Baochang) 天氣
Linhe 天氣
Jining 天氣
Hohhot 天氣, 氣候
Baotou 天氣
Dongsheng 天氣
Haibowan 天氣
Zhangjiakou 天氣
Handan 天氣
Northern Min Jian'ou 天氣, 天時
Pucheng (Shibei) 天氣
Eastern Min Fuzhou 天氣, 天時
Fuqing 天氣
Matsu 天氣
Southern Min Xiamen 天時, 天氣
Quanzhou 天時, 天氣
Shishi 天時
Yongchun 天色
Zhangzhou 天時, 天氣
Zhao'an 天氣, 天時
Dongshan 天時
Penang (Hokkien) 天時
Singapore (Hokkien) 天時, 天氣
Manila (Hokkien) 天氣
Pingnan (Shangdu) 天氣
Guiping (Xiaowen) 天氣
Guiping (Dongsheng) 天氣
Guilin (Biyange) 天氣
Yuhuan (Kanmen) 天時
Chaozhou 天時, 天氣
Shantou 天時
Shantou (Chenghai) 天時
Shantou (Chaoyang) 天時
Nan'ao (Houzhai) 天時
Nan'ao (Yun'ao) 天時
Jieyang 天時
Lufeng 天時
Haifeng 天時
Bangkok (Teochew) 天時
Johor Bahru (Teochew) 天時
Singapore (Teochew) 天時
Pontianak (Teochew) 天時
Wenchang 天氣
Haikou 天時
Qionghai 天氣
Singapore (Hainanese) 天氣
Puxian Min Putian 天時
Xianyou 天時
Central Min Yong'an 天氣
Yanping (Wangtai) 天氣
Zhongshan Min Shaxi (Longdu) 天時
Sanxiang 天時
Southern Pinghua Nanning (Tingzi) 天氣
Nanning (Shajing) 天氣
Nanning (Silian) 天氣
Northern Pinghua Guilin (Dahe) 天氣
Guilin (Chaoyang) 天氣
Guilin (Zhuyuan) 天氣
Guilin (Wutong, Lingui) 天氣
Guilin (Liutang, Lingui) 天氣
Lingchuan (Tanxia) 天氣
Lingchuan (Shuangzhou) 天氣
Guanyang (Guanyinge) 天色
Pingle (Zhangjia) 天氣
Yangshuo (Jima) 天氣
Yangshuo (Putao) 天色, 天氣
Shehua Fu'an 天性
Fuding 天氣
Luoyuan 天性
Sanming 天氣
Shunchang 天氣
Hua'an 天時
Guixi (Zhangping) 天氣
Cangnan 天氣
Jingning 天性
Lishui 天性
Longyou 天性
Chaozhou 天氣
Fengshun 天時
Waxiang Luxi (Liangjiatan) 天氣
Chengbu (Xuntou) 天色
Wu Shanghai 天氣
Shanghai (Chongming) 天色
Suzhou 天氣, 天
Danyang 天氣, 天光
Hangzhou 天空
Ningbo 天家
Taizhou 天家
Yuhuan (Damaiyu) 天色
Yuhuan (Chumen) 天家
Wenzhou 天色, 天時
Jinhua 天公, 天氣
Xiang Changsha 天色, 天氣
Xiangxiang 天氣
Loudi 天色
Shuangfeng 天氣
Hengshan 天
Hengshan (Baiguo) 天
Quanzhou 天氣
Guanyang (Wenshi) 天氣
Dialectal synonyms of 天 (“day (24 hours)”) [map]
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 日
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 日, 天
Mandarin Beijing 天
Taiwan 天
Wanrong 天
Ürümqi 天
Chengdu 天
Guiyang 天
Guilin 天
Liuzhou 天
Malaysia 天
Singapore 天
Olginsky (Mikhaylovka) 天
Cantonese Guangzhou 日
Hong Kong 日
Taishan 日
Taishan (Guanghai) 日
Guiping (Jintian) 日
Chongzuo (Laituan) 天
Fusui (Qujiu) 日
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) 日
Singapore (Guangfu) 日
Mandalay (Taishan) 日, 天
Gan Nanchang 日
Lichuan 日
Pingxiang 工, 日
Hakka Meixian 日
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 日
Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian) 日
Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu) 日
Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu) 日
Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping) 日
Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an) 日
Huizhou Jixi 日
Jin Taiyuan 天
Northern Min Jian'ou 工
Eastern Min Fuzhou 日, 工
Gutian 工
Pingnan 工
Fu'an 工
Ningde 工
Xiapu 工
Zherong 工
Shouning 工
Zhouning 工
Fuding 工
Southern Min Xiamen 日
Quanzhou 日, 工
Anxi 工
Yongchun 日, 工
Zhangzhou 日
Zhangzhou (Changtai) 日
Zhao'an 日
Dongshan 日
Taipei 工, 日
New Taipei (Sanxia) 工, 日
Kaohsiung 工, 日
Yilan 工, 日
Changhua (Lukang) 工, 日
Taichung 日, 工
Taichung (Wuqi) 工
Tainan 工, 日
Taitung 日
Hsinchu 日, 工
Kinmen 工
Penghu (Magong) 工
Penang (Hokkien) 日
Singapore (Hokkien) 工, 日
Manila (Hokkien) 日
Datian 工
Pingnan (Pingtian) 日
Guilin (Biyange) 日
Chaozhou 日
Shantou 日
Singapore (Teochew) 日
Haikou 日
Singapore (Hainanese) 日
Puxian Min Putian 工, 日
Putian (Donghai) 工
Putian (Jiangkou) 日
Putian (Nanri) 工
Xianyou 工
Xianyou (Fengting) 工
Xianyou (Youyang) 工
Northern Pinghua Guilin (Dabu) 日
Guilin (Wutong, Lingui) 日
Guilin (Liangjiang, Lingui) 日
Lingchuan (Sanjie) 日
Wu Shanghai 天, 日, 日天
Suzhou 日
Hangzhou 日
Ningbo 日
Wenzhou 日
Jinhua 日
Xiang Changsha 天

Compounds edit

Descendants edit

Sino-Xenic (天):
  • → Japanese: 天(てん) (ten)
  • → Korean: 천(天) (cheon)
  • → Vietnamese: thiên (天)

References edit

Japanese edit

 
Japanese Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia ja

Kanji edit

天

(grade 1 “Kyōiku” kanji)

  1. heavens, sky

Readings edit

Compounds edit

Compounds

Etymology 1 edit

Kanji in this term
天
あま
Grade: 1
kun’yomi

From Old Japanese. A bound form only appearing in compounds.[1][2] Compare the formation of 目 (ma, bound form in compounds) and 目 (me, standalone form), 手 (ta, bound form in compounds) and 手 (te, standalone form).

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

天(あま) • (ama) 

  1. (archaic) the sky, the heavens
  2. the area above a kitchen stove:
    1. where the smoke collects in an old kitchen using a wood-burning stove
    2. a shelf or shelves above the stove
  3. (archaic) heaven
Derived terms edit
Derived terms from noun あま

Etymology 2 edit

Kanji in this term
天
あめ
Grade: 1
kun’yomi

⟨ame2⟩ → */aməj/ → /ame/

From Old Japanese as a sound shift from ama above.[1] Compare 神 (kami, kan-, kamu-, “god”), 目 (me, ma-, “eye”), etc. Ultimately from Proto-Japonic *amay.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

天(あめ) • (ame) 

  1. (archaic) the sky, the heavens
  2. (archaic) heaven
  3. (archaic) the roof of a palace
Derived terms edit
Derived terms from noun あめ
Idioms edit
Idioms

Etymology 3 edit

Kanji in this term
天
てん
Grade: 1
on’yomi

From Middle Chinese 天 (MC then, “sky; heavens”). Compare modern Mandarin reading tiān.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

天(てん) • (ten) 

  1. the sky, the heavens
  2. heaven
  3. (Buddhism) a deva or devi
    Hyponym: 天女 (tennyo)
    天(てん)道(どう)
    tendō
    the world of heavenly gods; the world of devas
    天(てん)部(ぶ)
    tenbu
    devas; the class of heavenly gods
    大(だい)黒(こく)天(てん)
    Daikokuten
    Mahakala
    (literally, “the Great Black Deva”)
    弁(べん)才(ざい)天(てん)
    Benzaiten
    Saraswati
    (literally, “the Eloquent Devi”)
  4. (figurative) the gods, providence, fate
    天(てん)の与(あた)え
    ten no atae
    gift from the gods
  5. (printing, of a page) the top margin
    Antonym: 地
    Hypernym: マージン
Derived terms edit
Derived terms from noun てん
Idioms edit
Idioms

Affix edit

天(てん) • (ten) 

  1. the sky, the heavens
  2. heaven
  3. Short for 天ぷら (tenpura).

References edit

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK Publishing, →ISBN

Korean edit

Etymology edit

From Middle Chinese 天 (MC then).

Historical Readings
Dongguk Jeongun Reading
Dongguk Jeongun, 1448 텬 (Yale: thyèn)
Middle Korean
Text Eumhun
Gloss (hun) Reading
Hunmong Jahoe, 1527[2] 하ᄂᆞᆯ〮 (Yale: hànól) 텬 (Yale: thyèn)

Pronunciation edit

Hanja edit

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

Wikisource

天 (eumhun 하늘 천 (haneul cheon))

  1. Hanja form? of 천 (“sky; heaven”).

Compounds edit

Compounds

References edit

  • 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典. [3]

Vietnamese edit

Han character edit

天: Hán Việt readings: thiên[1][2][3]
天: Nôm readings: thiên[1][2][3], thiêng[1]

  1. chữ Hán form of thiên (“sky; heaven”).

Compounds edit

Derived terms

References edit

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Nguyễn (2014).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Nguyễn et al. (2009).
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Trần (2004).
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