郸

鄲

dān

单 + 阝

Definitions

dān used in place names 邯鄲|邯郸[hán dān] (historically, a county in Hebei, now a city) and 鄲城|郸城[dān chéng] (a county in Henan)

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 阝 represents the meaning and 单 represents the sound. Simplified form of 鄲.

Semantic: 阝 Phonetic: 单

About

The character 郸, traditionally written as 鄲, is a phono-semantic compound used almost exclusively as a toponym for a specific geographic location and historical city. Its semantic component is the city radical 阝, derived from 邑, which classifies it as a municipality or regional state. The left component, simplified as 单 (traditional 單), functions purely phonetically to indicate pronunciation and does not contribute its standard meaning of "single" or "solitary". The character is most recognized as part of Handan (邯郸), the ancient capital of the State of Zhao during the Warring States period.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Mid Warring States (~300 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

邯郸是一个古老的城市。

Hán dān shì yī gè gǔ lǎo de chéng shì.

Handan is an ancient city.

我去过邯郸旅游。

Wǒ qù guo hán dān lǚ yóu.

I have traveled to Handan.

邯郸的历史文化丰富。

Hán dān de lì shǐ wén huà fēng fù.

Handan has rich historical culture.

我们明年要去邯郸。

Wǒ men míng nián yào qù hán dān.

We will go to Handan next year.

邯郸正在建设新机场。

Hán dān zhèng zài jiàn shè xīn jī chǎng.

Handan is building a new airport.

邯郸比石家庄历史更久。

Hán dān bǐ shí jiā zhuāng lì shǐ gèng jiǔ.

Handan has a longer history than Shijiazhuang.

因为邯郸古迹多，所以游客常来。

Yīn wèi hán dān gǔ jì duō, suǒ yǐ yóu kè cháng lái.

Because Handan has many historical sites, tourists often come.

虽然邯郸不是大城市，但是它的文化影响很大。

Suī rán hán dān bú shì dà chéng shì, dàn shì tā de wén huà yǐng xiǎng hěn dà.

Although Handan is not a big city, its cultural influence is great.

Related Characters

Component: 单

Component: 阝

郸