[[Characters]] #Characters \ #Natural-World \ #Food-and-Drinks # 彝 yí wine vessel ## Components [[彑 (jì)]] [[廾 (gǒng)]] [[米 mǐ]] [[米 (mǐ)]] [[糸 (mì)]] ## Meaning Nowadays, the character “彝” primarily refers to an ancestral or ritual vessel, often made of bronze, used in ancient Chinese ceremonies. It signifies something that is customary, traditional, or consistent, reflecting its historical use in rituals and offerings. Additionally, “彝” can also be used metaphorically to represent established customs, traditions, or principles. ## History The character “彝” is an ideogrammic compound character and also a phono-semantic compound. In oracle bone script and bronze inscriptions, it depicts hands holding a bird, representing a sacrificial offering, as birds were commonly used in ancient temple sacrifices. In the seal script and clerical script, the character consists of components indicating "tie," "rice," and "hands" (双手), with the phonetic element "生" (j). This signifies that "彝" is a sacrificial vessel for offerings. Its original meaning is offering a bird in sacrifice. Over time, as birds were used as sacrificial offerings, the character evolved to denote bird-shaped sacrificial vessels and eventually became a general term for bronze sacrificial vessels. ## Evolution ### Oracular Script ![[彝 ora.svg]] ### Bronze Script ![[彝 bronce.svg]] ### Seal Script ![[彝 sello.svg]] ### Clerical Script ![[彝 cle.svg]] ### Regular Script ![[彝 reg.svg]]