馬

Stroke order

Stroke order (Hong Kong)

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Radical 187 馬

馬 (Kangxi radical 187, 馬+0, 10 strokes, cangjie input 尸手尸火 (SQSF), four-corner 7132₇, composition ⿹⿺㇉⿻三丨灬)

1. Kangxi radical #187, ⾺.

• Appendix:Chinese radical/馬
• 傌(㐷), 馮(冯), 嗎(吗), 𡏢, 媽(妈), 𫹞, 𢲫, 榪(杩), 瑪(玛), 溤, 獁(犸), 䧞, 𤌬, 𤚴, 𦟐, 𥉊, 碼(码), 禡(祃), 𥡗, 𧜗, 𦄀, 𦟖, 螞(蚂), 𧪨, 𧽙, 𮜃, 𨉸, 𨎇, 𠓄, 𣜋, 鎷(𨰾), 䩻, 䬚, 鰢, 鷌
• 𠺎, 䣕, 䣖, 颿, 𢟀, 𭊢, 𠖖, 䔍, 遤, 𫨑, 𢉿, 㾺(𬏜), 𥧓, 𦋻, 罵/駡(骂), 篤(笃), 闖(闯), 𮫕, 𡈊, 褭(𬡇), 隲

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 1433, character 1
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 44572
• Dae Jaweon: page 1956, character 34
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 7, page 4539, character 1
• Unihan data for U+99AC

Historical forms of the character 馬
Shang		Western Zhou	Spring and Autumn	Warring States			Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)			Liushutong (compiled in Ming)	Libian (compiled in Qing)
Bronze inscriptions	Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Bronze inscriptions	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Qin slip script	Shizhoupian script	Ancient script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts	Clerical script

Semi-cursive script	Cursive script

Pictogram (象形) – a horse with its head facing the left, showing a flowing mane in the wind. In the bronze inscriptions, the head was often simplified into an eye (目 (mù)). The legs eventually evolved into four dots (灬 (huǒ), unrelated to 火 (huǒ)).

Contrast with 鹿 (lù, “deer”), which saw a very different development, and 𢊁 (as in 薦 / 荐 (jiàn)), which is a hybrid: it has the legs of 馬 (灬 (huǒ)) but the head of 鹿 (lù).

Wikipedia has articles on:

• 馬 (Written Standard Chinese^?)
• 馬 (Cantonese)
• 馬 (Gan)
• mâ (Hakka)
• mā (Eastern Min)
• bé (Southern Min)
• 马 (Wu)

“Horse” – from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *k-m-raŋ ~ s-raŋ. The sense of “big” is derived from “horse”; compare the English uses of horse.

For the insect prefix sense, see 螞 / 蚂. It has converged with the sense of “big”.

The surname is popularly known to be prevalent among Hui Muslims, where it is likely derived from Arabic مُحَمَّد (muḥammad, “Muhammad”), although the surname 馬 itself predates Islam.

馬

1. horse (Classifier: 匹 m c; 隻／只 m c mn)

   騎馬／骑马  ―  qímǎ  ―  to ride a horse

2. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) horse-shaped
3. (xiangqi) knight; horse: 🩪 (sometimes only on the black side)
4. (chess) knight
5. (Cantonese) horse race (Classifier: 場／场 c)
6. Original form of 碼／码 (mǎ, “chip for counting”).
7. big (prefix for nouns)

   馬勺／马勺  ―  mǎsháo  ―  ladle (big spoon)

8. (Southwestern Mandarin, including Sichuanese) to bully
9. (Sichuanese) to keep a straight face
10. (Cantonese, slang) subordinate
11. Prefix for names of insects, also written as 螞.
12. Short for 馬祖／马祖 (Mǎzǔ, “Matsu”).
13. Used in transcription.

    馬爾代夫／马尔代夫  ―  Mǎ'ěrdàifū  ―  Maldives

    馬達加斯加／马达加斯加  ―  Mǎdájiāsījiā  ―  Madagascar

    阿拉巴馬／阿拉巴马  ―  Ālābāmǎ  ―  Alabama

    馬賽／马赛  ―  Mǎsài  ―  Marseille

    馬尼拉／马尼拉  ―  Mǎnílā  ―  Manila

    馬利亞／马利亚  ―  Mǎlìyà  ―  Virgin Mary

    馬克士威／马克士威  ―  Mǎkèshìwēi  ―  Maxwell

    馬丁・路德／马丁・路德  ―  Mǎdīng・Lùdé  ―  Martin Luther

    1. Short for 馬來西亞／马来西亚 (Mǎláixīyà, “Malaysia”).

       大馬／大马  ―  Dàmǎ  ―  Malaysia

       新馬華語／新马华语  ―  Xīn-Mǎ Huáyǔ  ―  Malayo-Singaporean Mandarin

    2. (Mainland China) Short for 馬克思／马克思 (Mǎkèsī, “Marx”).
    3. Short for 馬列主義／马列主义 (Mǎlièzhǔyì, “Marxism-Leninism”).
14. a surname

    馬步芳／马步芳  ―  Mǎ Bùfāng  ―  Ma Bufang (Chinese warlord and member of Ma clique)

    馬英九／马英九  ―  Mǎ Yīngjiǔ  ―  Ma Ying-jeou (President of the Republic of China (Taiwan), 2008-2016)

• (Chinese chess pieces) 帥 / 帅 (shuài) / 將 / 将 (jiàng), 仕 (shì) / 士 (shì), 相 / 象 (xiàng), 俥 / 伡 / 車 / 车 (jū), 傌 / 㐷 / 馬 / 马 (mǎ), 炮 / 砲 / 炮, 兵 (bīng) / 卒 (zú)

Others:

• → Proto-Tai: *maːꟲ (“horse”)
  • Northern Tai
    • Bouyei: max
    • Zhuang: max
  • Central Tai
    • Tày: mạ
    • Nùng: mạ
    • Nong Zhuang: max
  • Proto-Southwestern Tai:
    • Ahom: 𑜉𑜠 (ma), 𑜉𑜡 (mā), 𑜉𑜡𑜠 (māa)
    • Thai: ม้า (máa)
    • Northern Thai: ᨾ᩶ᩣ
    • Lao: ມ້າ (mā)
    • Lü: ᦙᦱᧉ (maa²)
    • Tai Dam: ꪣ꫁ꪱ
    • Shan: မႃႉ (mâ̰a)
    • Tai Nüa: ᥛᥣᥳ (mȧa)
• → Thai: เบ๊ (bée, “horse”) (via Teochew)

• (Chinese zodiac signs) (~年) 鼠 (shǔ), 牛 (niú), 虎 (hǔ), 兔 (tù), 龍／龙 (lóng), 蛇 (shé), 馬／马 (mǎ), 羊 (yáng), 猴 (hóu), 雞／鸡 (jī), 狗 (gǒu), 豬／猪 (zhū) ^{(Category: zh:Chinese zodiac signs)}

Chess pieces in Mandarin · 國際象棋棋子 / 国际象棋棋子 (guójì xiàngqí qízǐ) (layout · text)
王 (wáng), 國王 / 国王 (guówáng)	后 (hòu), 皇后 (huánghòu)	車 / 车 (jū), 城堡 (chéngbǎo)	象 (xiàng), 主教 (zhǔjiào)	馬 / 马 (mǎ), 騎士 / 骑士 (qíshì)	兵 (bīng)

• “馬”, 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 #6822”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2024.

Stroke order (Japan)

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

1. horse

• Go-on: め (me)
• Kan-on: ば (ba, Jōyō)
• Kan’yō-on: ま (ma)
• Kun: うま (uma, 馬, Jōyō)、ま (ma, 馬, Jōyō ^†)

Japanese Wikipedia has an article on:

馬

Wikipedia ^ja

English Wikipedia has an article on:

Horse

Wikipedia

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.^[1]

The initial m sound was apparently emphasized,^[1][2][3] possibly similar to *mma, becoming then uma or muma, via processes also seen in the word 梅 (ume, mume, “plum”). However, Pellard simply reconstructs Proto-Japonic *uma and treats the mentioned processes as secondary.^[4]

The ma sound denoting "horse" is common to a number of languages of central Asia, where horses were first domesticated, which has led some to speculate about a possible cognate root (but no consensus on any kind of relation exists). Compare Manchu ᠮᠣᡵᡳᠨ (morin, “horse”), Mongolian морь (morʹ, “horse”), Korean 말 (mal, “horse”), Mandarin 馬 / 马 (mǎ, “horse”), and Proto-Indo-European *márkos (“horse”) and descendants such as Irish marc (“horse”, archaic) or English mare (“female horse”). More at *márkos.^[3]

• (Tokyo, Yamanashi) うま (Odaka – )^[6][2][5]
• IPA^(key):

馬(うま) or 馬(ウマ) • (uma)  (counter 頭)

1. a horse
2. (shogi) a promoted bishop
3. a sawhorse: a four-leg stand made of wood or iron for supporting other materials

• As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as ウマ.

Shift from uma form, becoming more common starting from the Heian Period.^[1] This change later reverted, and muma is now considered obsolete.

• IPA^(key):

馬(むま) • (muma) 

1. (obsolete) a horse
   • c. 759, Man’yōshū, book 20, poem 4372:

     阿志加良能 美佐可多麻波理 可閇理美須 阿例波久江由久 阿良志乎母 多志夜波婆可流 不破乃世伎 久江弖和波由久 牟麻能都米 都久志能佐伎尓 知麻利為弖 阿例波伊波々牟 母呂々々波 佐祁久等麻乎須 可閇利久麻弖尓

     received the Asigara slope, and I will cross over without looking back. Will a tough man hesitate to depart? I will go crossing Pupa barrier. will stay and dwell at the cape in Tukushi (9) a horse’s hoof, and I will pray will ask that everybody safe until return.^[7]

   • c. 935 Tosa Nikki

     ふぢはらのときざね、ふなぢなれど、むまのはなむけす。

     The truth of the time in Fujiwara, even if at the boat road, exchange my horse nose (su element is unknown).

   • c. 935 Tosa Nikki

     けふはあをむまをおもへど、かひなし。

     Today even thinking about the blue horse is in vain.

Possibly from preform *Nma, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *Cma.

• IPA^(key):

馬(んま) • (nma) 

1. (Fukui) a horse

Possibly from preform *MCma, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *Cma.

• IPA^(key):

馬(んーま) • (nnma) 

1. (Kagoshima) a horse

From Middle Chinese 馬 (MC maeX). The 漢音 (kan'on), so a later borrowing. Compare Min Nan 馬 / 马 (bé, bée, má) where some of the readings show a shift from initial nasal /m-/ to voiced plosive /b-/.

• IPA^(key):

馬(ば) • (ba) 

1. horse

   競(けい)馬(ば)

   keiba

   horse racing

馬 (eumhun 말 마 (mal ma))
馬 (eumhun 성 마 (seong ma))

1. hanja form^? of 마 (“horse (in compounds)”)

• 마차 (馬車, macha, “horse-drawn carriage”)
• 경마 (競馬, gyeongma, “horserace”)
• 천리마 (千里馬, cheollima, “mythical winged horse”)

• 말 (mal)

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

• Kun: っんま ('nma)

First attested in the Liúqiú guăn yìyŭ (琉球館譯語), 1469-1470, as 烏馬 (uma).^[1]

In turn, from Proto-Ryukyuan *Mma, from Proto-Japonic *Cma.

Cognate with Japanese 馬 (uma).

• IPA^(key):

馬(っんま) ('nma) 

1. a horse

   馬(っんま)ー草(くさ)食(か)むん。

   'Nmā kusa kamun.

   The horse eats grass.

• “っんま・ぅんま【馬】” in JLect - Japonic Languages and Dialects Database Dictionary, 2019.

馬: Hán Việt readings: mã (莫(mạc)下(hạ)切(thiết))^{[1][2][3][4][5]}
馬: Nôm readings: mựa^{[1][2][6][4][5][7]}, mã^{[1][2][4][5][7]}, mở^[1][2][3], mứa^[6][5][7], mả^[1][2], mỡ^[1], ngựa^[2]