About
箜 is a phono-semantic compound, with the semantic radical 竹 (bamboo) at the top indicating its material category, and the phonetic component 空 (kōng) below providing its pronunciation. The character is used almost exclusively as part of the compound word 箜篌 (kōnghóu), denoting an ancient plucked multi-string instrument similar to a harp. The bamboo radical reflects the historical use of this material in constructing such instruments. Outside of this specific musical term, 箜 has negligible independent usage.