[[Characters]] #Characters \ #Society-and-Culture \ #Interpersonal-Relationships # 兄 xiōng elder brother ## Components [[口 (kǒu)]] [[口 kǒu]] [[儿 (ér)]] ## Meaning In contemporary usage, the character "兄" (xiōng) primarily means: - **Elder Brother**: Referring to one's older brother. ## History In the past, elder brothers were like fathers and enjoyed many privileges over their younger siblings. Nowadays, however, siblings are considered equals, and everyone should take charge of their own lives. The character "兄" (xiōng) consists of the radical "口" (kǒu) on top and "人" (rén) below. It depicts a person standing with their mouth open, as if giving orders to others. In ancient times, people placed great importance on respecting the seniority of elders. As the elder brother was older than the younger siblings, he could assign tasks and give orders to them. The ancient form of the character vividly illustrates this point. Because the mouth is used most frequently to give instructions to others, the oracle bone script exaggerated the mouth's depiction. ## Evolution ### Oracular Script ![[兄 xiōng - ora.svg]] ### Bronze Script ![[兄 xiōng - bronce.svg]] ### Seal Script ![[兄 xiōng - sello.svg]] ### Clerical Script ![[兄 xiōng - cle.svg]] ### Regular Script ![[兄 xiōng - reg.svg]]