About
The character 邕 is structured from the components 川, meaning river, and 邑, meaning city or settlement, which together illustrate its original conception of a settlement enclosed by water. Etymologically, it carried the sense of blocked or encircling water, similar to a moat surrounding a city. This meaning gradually narrowed from a general term for such hydraulic features to become a specific toponym, most notably applied to the Yong River in Guangxi and later to the administrative region of Yongzhou, from which the city of Nanning derives its historical name.
Etymology Hide
