旗

A phono-semantic compound:

㫃 (“fluttering flag,” composed of 方 square + 人 person) — semantic element, indicating cloth or a flag waving

其 (“that, its”) — phonetic element providing the sound

Together, they depict a flag/banner raised and fluttering in the wind, both as a physical object and as a symbol.

旗幟 (기치) — flag; banner; also used metaphorically for ideals or guiding principles

国旗 (국기) — national flag

校旗 (교기) — school flag

旗手 (기수) — flag bearer

紅旗 (홍기) — red flag

In military and political contexts, 旗 was historically important as a marker of troops, identity, or allegiance.

In modern times, it is most often encountered in compounds for national flags (국기) and symbols of institutions.

Interesting fact: In the Korean hanja curriculum, 旗 is classified as a reading grade 7, writing grade 6 character — making it the only “high school–level” character among grade 7 hanja, and simultaneously the one with the lowest grade level among high school educational hanja.