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鲔 (wěi), the simplified form of 鮪, is a phonosemantic compound: the left-side component 鱼 (yú) means 'fish', and the right-side component 有 (yǒu) gives the pronunciation. In ancient Chinese texts, it referred to the sturgeon, a massive freshwater fish of China's river systems, appearing in classical poetry and accounts of royal banquets. As maritime trade and modern taxonomy developed, the character's use shifted, and it now translates 'tuna', a large, commercially important saltwater fish unrelated to the sturgeon.
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