Definitions
Zhou, pejorative name given posthumously to the last king of the Shang dynasty, King Zhou of Shang 商紂王|商纣王[shāng zhòu wáng] (the name refers to a crupper 紂|纣[zhòu], the piece of horse tack most likely to be soiled by the horse)
crupper (harness strap running over a horse's hindquarters and under its tail)
About
The character 纣, with its traditional form 紂, is structured from the silk radical 糸 and the component 寸, initially signifying a crupper or strap in a horse's harness due to the radical's connection to cords. Its meaning shifted when the character was employed in the name of the final Shang dynasty ruler, King Zhou, leading it to become exclusively associated with his reign and acquiring connotations of tyranny and excess. The composition of the traditional character, combining elements for a pliable material and a hand-related measure, remained consistent while its semantic focus moved entirely from an object to a historical figure and his negative attributes.
Etymology Hide
