號

Phono-semantic compound consisting of:

口 (입 구) — semantic component indicating speech or sound.

號 (phonetic base from 虍 + 丂 + 号) — originally depicting a tiger’s roar or a loud cry.

In early forms, 號 represented the bellow or roar of wild beasts, later extended to human shouting or calling, and finally to the act of naming — as to “call something by name.”

Thus, the transition is:

roar → cry aloud → call → name → title

國號 (국호) — name of a country

年號 (연호) — reign title, era name

稱號 (칭호) — title, designation

別號 (별호) — pen name, literary alias

信號 (신호) — signal, sign

呼號 (호호) — to shout loudly, to cry out

哀號 (애호) — to wail, to lament loudly

怒號 (노호) — to roar in anger

號哭 (호곡) — to cry out in grief, to wail

呼號救援 (호호구원) — to shout for help

In classical philosophy, 號 (crying out) embodies the natural expression of emotion — the unmediated voice of the heart.

人不勝其哀而號。

“When grief overcomes man, he cries aloud” — Liji (禮記 · 檀弓篇).

Here, 號 is not mere sound but the spontaneous resonance of inner feeling — the Confucian ideal of 진정성 (誠) expressed through sound.

As “to name” (이름을 짓다), 號 carries the notion of declaring identity before the world — whether personal (別號), political (國號), or cosmic (年號).

名以正體，號以顯志。

“Names define essence; appellations reveal aspiration” — Tang Confucian commentary.

Thus, 名 names one’s nature, while 號 proclaims one’s chosen ideal or public identity.

In Daoist and Confucian writings alike, 號 can signify the outcry of conscience or compassion, an audible act of sincerity.

號天而泣，非怨，乃仁也。

“He cried to Heaven not in resentment, but from compassion” — Zhuangzi (莊子).

This shows how 號 bridges physical sound and moral truth — voice as the vehicle of human authenticity.