About
The character 枞 is a phono-semantic compound used in botany to denote fir trees and related conifers in the Pinaceae family. Its traditional form, 樅, combines the semantic radical 木 (wood or tree), indicating its botanical domain, with the phonetic component 從, which provides its pronunciation. The simplified form 枞 replaces the complex phonetic element with the simpler component 从. In classical texts, the character sometimes referred to wooden beams or building structures before its meaning specialized to the fir tree and similar evergreen conifers in modern taxonomic and general use.
Etymology Hide
