The word "伊拉克" (Yīlākè) is formed purely through a phonetic transcription process, where three pre-existing Chinese characters are selected solely for how closely their sounds approximate the syllables of the foreign name "Iraq". Each character, 伊 (yī), 拉 (lā), and 克 (kè), functions as a sound symbol, with their original meanings (like "he/she" for 伊 or "gram" for 克) being irrelevant and ignored in this context. The combination creates a fixed phonetic representation for the country's name in Chinese.