胥

xū

月 + 疋

Definitions

xū surname Xu

xū all; assist; to store

Etymology

A body ⺼ wrapped in cloth 疋

About

The character 胥 is composed of the semantic component ⺼, a reduced form of 肉 that means 'flesh' or 'body' (not to be confused with the moon radical 月), and the component 疋, which here represents a cloth wrapping, yielding the depiction of a body wrapped in cloth. Historically, it functioned as a noun for minor government officials, clerks, and subordinate functionaries in imperial China, who handled local administrative tasks such as record-keeping, tax collection, and serving as runners or aides to magistrates. Over time, with the modernization of Chinese administrative language and the end of the imperial system, the term dropped out of common use, surviving now only in historical and classical contexts, and as a relatively common Chinese surname.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

胥先生来自北京。

Xū xiānshēng láizì Běijīng.

Mr. Xu comes from Beijing.

我的同事姓胥。

Wǒ de tóngshì xìng Xū.

My colleague's surname is Xu.

古代胥吏地位不高。

Gǔdài xūlì dìwèi bù gāo.

In ancient times, petty officials had low status.

这位胥吏负责记录文书。

Zhè wèi xūlì fùzé jìlù wénshū.

This petty official is responsible for recording documents.

胥役在衙门里工作。

Xūyì zài yámén lǐ gōngzuò.

The clerks work in the yamen.

研究历史需要了解胥吏制度。

Yánjiū lìshǐ xūyào liǎojiě xūlì zhìdù.

Studying history requires understanding the petty official system.

胥姓在中国并不常见。

Xū xìng zài Zhōngguó bìng bù chángjiàn.

The surname Xu is not very common in China.

尽管胥吏权力有限，但他们处理日常政务。

Jǐnguǎn xūlì quánlì yǒuxiàn, dàn tāmen chǔlǐ rìcháng zhèngwù.

Although petty officials have limited power, they handle daily government affairs.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 月

Component: 疋

胥