This 'valley' character is also 'grain' — because

Though it means ‘manuscript,’ 稿’s 禾 (grain) r

Born in Ming slang, this 'pimple' character never

This serene five-stroke character began as a picto

This 20-stroke character began as a hand pouring w

Though it looks like 'general' (概), 溉 is all abo

Its right side looks like 'alley' — because ancie

Its right side 昆 looks like 'insect' but was chos

This 7-stroke 'flagpole' character began as a Bron

Though it looks like a simple 'wood + dry' combo,

Born from a carpenter’s square and a warrior’s s

This 'place' character evolved from a foot steppin

This six-stroke character looks like a hand grippi

Though it means 'hillock', 岗 is almost never used

This 7-stroke character began as a picture of a li

This 'lone' character was once how kings humbly ad

This 4-stroke character began as a Bronze Age fish

Originally a ritual knife severing grain — now em

This stark 4-stroke character began as a kneeling

This character began as a shaman’s vision of a gr

This character began as a detailed oracle-bone ske

This character began as a drawing of stretched ox

This 'separation' character began as a ritual caul

This 'pot' character hides a phonetic secret: 呙 o

This ‘tribute’ character hides a cowrie shell (

Born as a bronze-age pictograph of a swaddled pers

Born as a pictograph of a lid on a vessel, 盖 now

From ancient bronze inscriptions depicting a crouc

Born as the taut head rope of a fishing net, 纲 no

Its 13 strokes visually spiral like a whirlpool —

This 'ditch' character hides a 3,000-year-old engi

Born as a bird flying home in oracle bone script,

Born from an ancient pole used to stir deep pots,

A phonetic fossil — looks like 'wood + hook' but

This 8-stroke character began as a hand twisting a

This character began as a kneeling person offering

Originally a pictograph of a sealed administrative

This 'paternal aunt' character hides an ancient ph

Originally a walled ancient citadel — now the go-

This five-stroke 'ancient' character began as a kn