浩

Phono-semantic compound consisting of:

水 (물 수) — semantic component, denoting water, fluidity, or flow.

告 (알릴 고) — phonetic component, giving the sound hào / ho and suggesting expression, proclamation, or breadth of sound and awareness.

According to Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字):

「浩，大水也。从水，告聲。」

“浩 means great water. Formed from 水 (‘water’) and phonetic 告 (‘to announce’).”

The phonetic element 告 also conveys openness and resonance — symbolically extending to the vastness and grandeur of sound or action.

Thus, 浩 originally described the vast expanse of water or the immense spread of the sea and later came to signify magnitude, greatness, and noble immensity in both physical and moral senses.

浩大 (호대) — vast; immense

浩然 (호연) — vast and natural; grand and upright in spirit

浩氣 (호기) — great spirit; heroic energy; moral grandeur

浩瀚 (호한) — vast; extensive (esp. oceans, literature, or knowledge)

浩蕩 (호탕) — expansive; magnificent; bold and free

浩渺 (호묘) — boundless; far-reaching; hazy and vast

浩波 (호파) — great waves; surging water

The character 浩 has long been used to describe both the natural immensity of water and the moral immensity of human spirit.

Its earliest forms in bronze inscriptions (金文 jinwen) depict flowing water lines combined with the declarative structure of 告, visually evoking the spreading waves that seem to “proclaim” their vastness.

In classical literature, 浩 frequently appears in compound expressions denoting grandeur of mind and nature.

In Mencius (孟子·公孫丑上), the phrase 浩然之氣 is among the most celebrated:

「我善養吾浩然之氣。」

“I nurture within myself the vast, upright energy (浩然之氣).”

Here, 浩 conveys moral magnitude — the expansive, unyielding force of righteousness that fills the universe.

Similarly, Book of Songs (詩經·小雅) uses 浩浩 to evoke the majestic flow of rivers:

「浩浩滾滾，不可極也。」

“Vast and rolling, without end.”

This imagery became a poetic archetype for boundless flow, vitality, and perseverance.

In Daoist and later Neo-Confucian writings, 浩 symbolizes cosmic breadth and unboundedness — the merging of mind and nature, or human virtue and the Dao.

Thus, 浩然 (grandly natural) became a philosophical ideal: the spontaneous harmony of moral clarity and universal vitality.

Cultural and symbolic meaning:

The semantic field of 浩 spans water, energy, emotion, and morality.

As water flows endlessly yet gently, so 浩 represents expansive strength restrained by harmony.

It embodies qualities of the gentle hero — vast in feeling, firm in virtue, and generous in spirit.

In literary tradition, 浩氣 (great spirit) is the power of loyalty and truth that transcends life and death — celebrated in Ming poetry and Confucian ethics alike:

「天地有正氣，雜然賦流形。下則為河嶽，上則為日星。」 (Wen Tianxiang, 正氣歌)

“Righteous energy fills heaven and earth — below, it forms rivers and mountains; above, the sun and stars.”

This 正氣 (righteous energy) is another expression of 浩然之氣, where 浩 captures both immensity and moral sublimity.