煤

Translingual

Han character

煤 (Kangxi radical 86, 火+9, 13 strokes, cangjie input 火廿一木 (FTMD), four-corner 9489₄, composition ⿰火某)

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 677, character 29
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 19220
• Dae Jaweon: page 1088, character 13
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 3, page 2214, character 2
• Unihan data for U+7164

Chinese

Glyph origin

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *mɯː) : semantic 火 (“fire”) + phonetic 某 (OC *mɯʔ).

Etymology

Sino-Tibetan. Schuessler (2007) proposes two possibilities:

• Cognate with Proto-Lolo-Burmese *ʔ-mu² (“soot; acrid (smoke)”). If related, a merger of Minimal Old Chinese *ə with *o must have occurred.
• Cognate with Mizo mang (maŋᴿ), man (manᴸ, “sooty”), Mizo mang (maŋᴴ, “partially burnt wood”).

文 (OC *mɯn) may be a derivation with -n nominal suffix. 黑 (OC *hmlɯːɡ, “black”) may be an allofam. Unrelated to 晦 (OC *hmɯːs, “dark”) according to Schuessler (2007).

Pronunciation

Definitions

煤

1. coal (Classifier: 塊／块 m c; 嚿 c)
2. ^† dust of smoke; soot

   • 向者煤室入甑中，棄食不祥，回攫而飯之。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     向者煤室入甑中，弃食不祥，回攫而饭之。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Lü Buwei, Master Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals, 239 BCE

     Xiàngzhě méi shì rù zèng zhōng, qì shí bùxiáng, Huí jué ér fàn zhī.

     Just now some dust and soot fell into the steamer. Ill fortune befalls those who throw away food; so I grabbed those grains and ate them.

3. ^† ink

Synonyms

Compounds

Descendants

• → Guiqiong: mɛi (“coal”)

References

• “煤”, 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–

Japanese

Kanji

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names)

Readings

• Go-on: まい (mai); め (me)
• Kan-on: ばい (bai)
• Kun: すす (susu, 煤)

Etymology 1

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE).

Possibly related to 炭 (sumi, “cinder; charcoal”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) す​す (Atamadaka – )
• (Tokyo) すす​ (Odaka – )
• IPA^(key):

Noun

煤(すす) • (susu) 

1. soot (fine particles of amorphous carbon and tar)
2. sooted dirt or dust accumulated in ceilings, walls, etc.
3. Short for 煤色 (susuiro): a shade of black as in the color of soot

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Middle Chinese 煤 (MC mwoj). Compare modern Min Nan reading bôe.

Affix

煤(ばい) • (bai) 

1. soot
2. coal

Derived terms

References

Further reading

• 炭 entry at Gogen-Allguide (in Japanese), regarding a possible connection between 煤 (susu, “soot”) and 炭 (sumi, “cinder; charcoal”)

Korean

Hanja

煤 (eumhun 그을음 매 (geueureum mae))

1. Hanja form^? of 매 (“soot”).

Okinawan

Kanji

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names)

Readings

• Kun: しーし (shīshi, 煤)

Etymology

Cognate with Japanese 煤 (susu).

Pronunciation

• (Shuri-Naha) しーし (Heiban - )
• IPA^(key):

Noun

煤(しーし) (shīshi) 

1. soot (fine particles of amorphous carbon and tar)

Old Japanese

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

煤 (susu) (kana すす)

1. soot (fine particles of amorphous carbon and tar)
   • 711–712, Kojiki, (Kuni-yuzuri):

     ...登陀流天之新巢之凝烟_{訓凝姻云州須}之八拳垂摩弖燒擧_{麻弖二字以音}

     ...in Takama-nö-para the soot (凝姻 is read as susu) hangs down eight hands long (the two characters 摩弖 are pronounced made).

Derived terms

• 煤す (susu, “to be stained with soot”)

Descendants

• Japanese: 煤 (susu)

References

Vietnamese

Han character

煤: Hán Nôm readings: môi, muồi, mai

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

Yonaguni

Kanji

煤 (hiragana ちち, romaji chichi)

Etymology

Cognate with Japanese 煤 (susu).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Noun

煤 (hiragana ちち, romaji chichi)

1. soot (fine particles of amorphous carbon and tar)