廳

Phono-semantic compound:

广 (집 엄) — semantic component, meaning “building” or “covered structure.”

聽 (들을 청) — phonetic component, providing the sound tīng / cheong and connoting the sense of attentive hearing, hence a place where one listens or receives.

Thus, 廳 originally referred to a hall where matters are heard, i.e., a public office or hearing chamber.

In Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字), the earlier related form 聽 is defined as:

「聽，聽也。从耳，𢛳，從德。」

“聽 means to hear; composed of ear and virtue.”

廳 later developed by adding the house radical (广), giving the meaning “a hall where listening or judging occurs.”

廳舍 (청사) — government office building

官廳 (관청) — official bureau; administrative office

會廳 (회청) — conference hall

法廳 (법정) — court of law (lit. “law hall”)

公廳 (공청) — public hall

客廳 (객청) — guest hall or reception room (modern sense: “living room”)

Kangxi Dictionary (康熙字典) (vol. 534):

「廳，官署也。从广，聽聲。」

“廳 means a government office; composed of 广 (‘building’) and phonetic 聽.”

Book of Han (漢書 · 百官公卿表):

「尚書有六廳。」

“The Secretariat had six halls” — referring to official divisions of government offices.

Tang Rites (唐六典):

「諸司各有其廳以治其事。」

“Each bureau had its own hall to manage its affairs.”

In traditional Chinese architecture, 廳 (hall) denotes the principal building in a complex, often central to ceremonial or administrative activity (e.g., 大廳, 正廳).

In Confucian society, the 廳 was both a place of governance and a symbol of order and authority, where judgments were “heard” (聽政).

The idiom “垂簾聽政” (수렴청정) — “to listen to government affairs behind a curtain” — comes from this notion, with 廳 implied as the place where imperial governance was conducted.

Whether in the solemn space of ancient governance or the modern living room (客廳), 廳 has always carried the essence of hearing, hosting, and conducting — the heart of interaction under a roof.