九 jiǔ — nine · English

九

jiǔ

nine

At a glance · 九

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Evolution of the glyph

Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

⚠ Some ancient forms are not attested：oracle bone form、seal script form。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.

甲骨文、金文象手臂弯曲之形（或说象肘），象形，借为数词九。隶楷作「九」。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

「九」为数词，古人以九为阳数之极，表至多。

Structure

象形字，象屈曲之形，假借为数目九。

At a glance

Pinyinjiǔ

Radical丿

Strokes2

UnicodeU+4E5D

Character type象形

Theme数术

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English nine The number nine; the utmost (yang).

Français neuf Le nombre neuf; le suprême (yang).

Español nueve El número nueve; lo sumo (yang).

العربية تسعة العدد تسعة؛ الغاية.

Русский девять Число девять; предел (ян).

Common words

九jiǔnine
九月jiǔ yuèSeptember

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