About
The character 鸮, which refers to owls, particularly those of the genus Ketupa or Bubo, is structurally composed of the phonetic component 号 (hào) and the semantic radical 鸟 (niǎo), meaning bird. In its traditional form, which remains unchanged, it is written as 鴞. The use of 号 as a phonetic element likely alludes to the owl's distinctive vocalizations. Over time, the character's meaning has remained specific to a type of owl, without broadening or shifting to other semantic fields, and its form has been consistently used in written texts to denote this bird of prey.
Etymology Hide
