字 字源HanziOrigin
中文EnglishFrançaisEspañolالعربيةРусский
县
xiàn
county
At a glance · 县

Listen

Audio is synthesized in your browser: Mandarin for the character and Shuowen text, native voices for every translation. No downloads.

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.

县 Evolution of the glyph
  1. 县 Object sketch
    Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seen
  2. 县 Oracle bone
    Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
  3. 县 Seal script
    Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
  4. 县 Clerical script
    Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
  5. 县 Regular script
    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.

金文象木杆悬首之形，本义为悬挂（后作「悬」）。小篆加「系」旁，隶变为「縣」，简化作「县」。

What the sketch shows

县 Object sketch

Origins & notes

「县」本指悬挂，后用作地方行政区划名。

Structure

会意字，从系持首，象悬挂人头以示众之意，后引申为行政区划。

At a glance

Pinyinxiàn
Radical厶
Strokes7
UnicodeU+53BF
Character type会意
Theme政事

Six languages, one character

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

English county A county; originally meant 'to hang' (now written 悬).
Français district; suspendu Un district; à l'origine signifiait 'suspendre'.
Español condado; colgar Un condado; originalmente significaba 'colgar'.
العربية مقاطعة؛ تعليق مقاطعة إدارية؛ كانت تعني التعليق في الأصل.
Русский уезд; вешать Уезд; изначально означало «вешать».

Common words

  • 县xiàncounty
  • 县长xiàn zhǎngcounty head

Related characters

去