zi, zǐ
child
Pictograph of a small child with its two arms waving.
Evolution
Oracle script
(~1250-1000 BC)
Bronze script
Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
Seal script
Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical script
Western Jin dynasty (266-316 AD)Regular script
ModernDefinitions
zi
offspring, child; fruit, seed of; 1st terrestrial branch; (noun suffix)
zǐ
son; child; seed; egg; small thing; 1st earthly branch: 11 p.m.-1 a.m., midnight, 11th solar month (7th December to 5th January), year of the Rat; Viscount, fourth of five orders of nobility 五等爵位[wǔděngjuéwèi]; ancient Chinese compass point: 0° (north)
Component uses
Sources
徐中舒《甲骨文字典》p.1571