About
垠 is a phonosemantic compound: 土, the earth radical on the left, indicates the semantic field of land and terrain, while 艮 on the right gives the sound. The character originally referred to the boundaries, shores, or limits of a landmass or body of water. From this concrete meaning, it broadened to describe vast, boundless spaces, and it is often used in poetry to evoke the distant horizons of earth and sky.
Etymology Hide
Report an issue
Flag incorrect definitions, examples, etymology, etc.