The Chinese word "犬夜叉" is formed as a transliteration of the Japanese name "Inuyasha", where each character is selected for both phonetic resemblance and semantic relevance: "犬" means "dog", corresponding to "inu" in Japanese and reflecting the character's canine demon heritage; "夜" means "night", matching the "ya" sound and evoking nocturnal themes; and "叉" means "fork" or "cross", approximating the "sha" sound while contributing to the name's distinctive visual and conceptual identity.