About
The character "钒", denoting the metallic element vanadium, is based on its traditional form "釩", a phono-semantic compound coined in the 19th century after the element's identification. Its structure combines the metal radical "金", which appears as "钅" in the simplified form, with the phonetic component "凡" to signal its pronunciation. As a modern scientific creation, the character has consistently referred solely to the element vanadium from its introduction without undergoing semantic change.