臧

zāng, zàng

戕 + 臣

Frequency#4304

Definitions

zāng surname Zang

zāng good; right

zàng old variant of 藏[zàng]; old variant of 臟|脏[zàng]

Etymology

Depicts a weapon (戈) slashing an eye (臣). In ancient China, captured prisoners were blinded with weapons making them into slaves. 爿 was later added as a sound component. Based on the original meaning, "slave; servant". The current meaning "good" is a phonetic loan.

Semantic: 臣 Phonetic: 戕

About

The character 臧, structurally composed of the semantic component 臣 (subject) and the phonetic component 戕, originally carried the core meaning of "good" or "virtuous". Its semantic field later broadened to encompass the ideas of "to store" and "to conceal", with this extended sense eventually giving rise to the distinct derivative character 藏. In classical usage, 臧 also functioned as a term for a servant or slave, and it remains employed as a surname. The character's form has remained consistent as 臧, with no separate simplified counterpart created.