位

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位

Translingual

Stroke order

Stroke order

Han character

位 (Kangxi radical 9, 人+5, 7 strokes, cangjie input 人卜廿 (OYT), four-corner 2021₈, composition ⿰亻立)

Derived characters

• 涖, 莅, 𠴖, 𡾵, 𪝯, 𡸏, 𠑖, 𭂏, 𭠿, 𬕅

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 98, character 7
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 503
• Dae Jaweon: page 206, character 18
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 138, character 3
• Unihan data for U+4F4D

Further reading

• 位 on Wikidata.Wikidata

Chinese

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 位
Shang	Western Zhou	Warring States	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)	Libian (compiled in Qing)
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts	Clerical script
Oracle bone script j18932 Bronze inscriptions b12296 Small seal script s05743 Transcribed ancient scripts L36336 L36337 L36338 L36339 L21781 L21782 L21783 L21784 L21785
References: Mostly from Richard Sears' Chinese Etymology site (authorisation), which in turn draws data from various collections of ancient forms of Chinese characters, including: Shuowen Jiezi (small seal), Jinwen Bian (bronze inscriptions), Liushutong (Liushutong characters) and Yinxu Jiaguwen Bian (oracle bone script).

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) and phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢʷrɯbs) : semantic 亻 (“man”) + phonetic 立 (OC *rɯb, “stand”). Often simply written as 立 in idiomatic expressions such as 即位 (jíwèi) in Western Zhou inscriptions.

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-r(j)ap (“to stand”). Derived from 立 (OC *rɯb). Mei (2012) lists it among the possible nasal-prefixed verb forms (Old Chinese *N-k- > Middle Chinese *ɦ-, possibly forming a stative). Suffixed with a nominalizing *-s, it takes the sense "the place/rank/status one holds".

Pronunciation

Definitions

位

1. position; location; spot
   • 2007, “感恩的花蕊”, 詹雅雯 (lyrics), 劉清池 (music)‎performed by 詹雅雯:

     治心內找一個位　種一粒種籽 [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
     治心内找一个位　种一粒种籽 [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]

     tī sim-lāi chhōe chi̍t ê ūi, chéng chi̍t lia̍p chéng-chí [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]

     Find a spot in your heart, and plant a seed

2. title; official position
3. seat; seating
4. throne; royal seat
5. rank; grade; status
6. standard; rule
7. (honorific) people
8. (mathematics) digit; place

   三位數／三位数  ―  sān wèi shù  ―  three-digit number

   進位／进位  ―  jìnwèi  ―  to carry (by one or more places)

9. (often polite) Classifier for persons.

   這位歌手／这位歌手  ―  zhè wèi gēshǒu  ―  this singer

   那位先生  ―  nà wèi xiānshēng  ―  that man

10. to be situated at; to be located at
11. to arrange; to set out
12. (Cantonese) space

    間房唔夠位放多張檯。 [Cantonese, trad.]
    间房唔够位放多张台。 [Cantonese, simp.]

    gaan¹ fong^4-2 m⁴ gau³ wai^6-2 fong³ do¹ zoeng¹ toi^4-2.

    There is not enough space for another table in the room.

    偷位 [Cantonese]  ―  tau¹ wai^6-2   ―  (please add an English translation of this usage example)

13. (information theory) bit (the smallest unit of storage in a digital computer)
14. a surname: Wei

Synonyms

• (location):

• (title): (literary) 地步 (dìbù), 地位 (dìwèi)
• (seat):

• (throne):

• (bit): 比特 (bǐtè), 位元 (wèiyuán)

Compounds

References

• “位”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎, 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–
• “Entry #2873”, in 臺灣閩南語常用詞辭典 (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2023.

Japanese

Kanji

(grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

• Go-on: い (i, Jōyō)^{←ゐ (wi, historical)}
• Kan-on: い (i, Jōyō)^{←ゐ (wi, historical)}
• Kun: くらい (kurai, 位, Jōyō)^{←くらゐ (kurawi, 位, historical)}

Etymology 1

Middle Chinese 位 (ɦˠiuɪ^H)

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) い​ (Atamadaka – )
• IPA^(key):

Affix

位(い) • (i) ^{←ゐ (wi)?}

1. rank, place

Derived terms

Counter

位(い) • (-i) ^{←ゐ (wi)?}

1. rank, place

   第(だい)一(いち)位(い)である。

   Dai-ichi-i de aru.

   To be ranked first.

   二(に)位(い)になる。

   Ni-i ni naru.

   To take second place.

   十(じゅう)位(い)に落(お)ちる。

   Jū-i ni ochiru.

   To drop to tenth place.

2. decimal place
3. ghosts

Etymology 2

References

Korean

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 位 (MC hwijH).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): ~
• Phonetic hangul:

Hanja

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

位

Wikisource

位 (eumhun 자리 위 (jari wi))

1. Hanja form^? of 위 (“status, position”).
2. Hanja form^? of 위 (“rank, place”).

Compounds

References

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

Vietnamese

Han character

位: Hán Nôm readings: vị, vì

1. chữ Hán form of vị (“location; place”).
2. chữ Hán form of vị (“position; rank”).
3. (honorific, formal classifier) chữ Hán form of vị (“person; a/an (important person)”).
4. (archaic) chữ Hán form of vì (“throne, royal rule”).

Compounds

References

• Nom Foundation

Zhuang

Noun

位

1. Sawndip form of gyaeuj (“head; headhair”)