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The character 柽, whose traditional form is 檉, is structured as a phonetic compound with the wood radical 木 signifying its botanical nature and the right-hand component 聖 (simplified to 圣) historically indicating pronunciation. This character has consistently denoted the tamarisk tree in Chinese usage, without significant deviation in its semantic application. The evolution to the simplified form 柽 involved substituting the phonetic element 聖 with 圣, while retaining the wood radical, thus continuing the character's structural pattern and its specific reference to the plant.
Etymology Hide
