登

Originally a compound ideograph, later analyzed as a phono-semantic loan in extended senses:

癶 (발, two feet) – semantic component, indicating movement upward, stepping.

豆 (두, ritual vessel) – semantic component, representing an offering vessel on a high altar.

Together: “to carry a ritual vessel up the steps,” symbolizing ascending or mounting.

Variants in early scripts:

Oracle bone script (甲骨文): 癶 (feet) + 豆 (vessel), sometimes with 廾 (hands) underneath, showing hands lifting the vessel.

Bronze inscriptions (金文 jinwen): occasionally 豆 with 廾 below, without 癶, emphasizing the act of holding.

Seal script (小篆): stabilized as 癶 above 豆.

Symbolically associated with rising, progress, and advancement, often used in formal or ceremonial contexts.

登山 (등산) — to climb a mountain

登壇 (등단) — to ascend a platform, to make an appearance

登記 (등기) — to register, to record officially

登場 (등장) — to appear on stage, to make an entrance