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The character 垆, with its traditional form 壚, structurally integrates the earth radical 土 with the phonetic component 盧, originally referring to a black or loamy soil. This meaning expanded through metonymy to indicate the earthen counter or platform constructed from such soil in wine shops, thereby gradually acquiring the secondary sense of a tavern or wine-selling establishment. The simplified form 垆 retains the earth radical but substitutes the phonetic with 卢, and the character's semantic shift from a type of earth to a place of trade demonstrates how its application evolved based on physical attributes and social use.
Etymology Hide
