謂

Conveys the idea of speech that defines, names, or identifies something. It is the act of calling something by a name, or saying that something is so.

In classical usage, it appears in expressions that clarify meaning or define concepts — “to call…,” “to mean…,” “to say to…”.

Phono-semantic compound formed from:

言 (말씀 언) — semantic component, representing speech or words.

胃 (밥통 위) — phonetic component, providing the sound wi (위) and implying internal content or substance.

Together, they signify “speech that gives inner substance to a name” — language that defines, identifies, or expresses meaning.

In modern Chinese and Korean, 謂 survives mainly in formal or literary expressions:

所謂 (소위) — so-called; as referred to; “what is called…”

謂語 (위어) — predicate (in grammar; “that which is said”)

自謂 (자위) — to call oneself; to consider oneself

見謂 (견위) — to be called or regarded as

謂之 (위지) — “is called” (classical form still used in writing)

In classical thought, 謂 lies at the heart of language and definition — the process by which words give form to ideas.

Confucian and Daoist philosophers both examined how 謂 connects naming (名) and truth (實).

「正名以定謂。」

“By rectifying names, one fixes what things are called” — Xunzi (荀子), Rectifying Names.

In Daoist philosophy, however, naming (謂) is seen as limiting — once something is named, it loses its boundless nature:

「道可道，非常道；名可名，非常名。」

“The Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name” — Laozi (道德經).

Thus, 謂 embodies both the power and the limitation of language — the act of defining reality through speech, yet also constraining it within human understanding.

「謂而不執，言而不固，乃可與論道。」

“He who names without clinging, who speaks without rigidity, can discourse on the Way.”

Common patterns in Classical Chinese include:

所謂 A者 (소위 A 자) — “what is called A” / “the so-called A”

所謂仁者，愛人也。

“What is called benevolence is to love others.” (Mencius)

A 謂之 B — “A is called B” / “people call A as B”

天謂之高，地謂之厚。

“Heaven is called high, Earth is called deep.”

謂 A B — “call A B” / “regard A as B”

君子謂之義。

“The gentleman calls this righteousness.”

A 之謂 B — “that is what is called B”

此之謂道。

“This is what is called the Way.”

A 謂 B 曰… — “say to B…” or “address B as…”

孔子謂子路曰：「由也，好勇過我。」

“Confucius said to Zilu: ‘You surpass me in courage.’”

謂 is the character of naming and meaning — the voice that gives identity to the world.

Through it, thought becomes word, and word becomes truth.

But as sages warned, the same act that defines can also confine.

Therefore, 謂 reminds us language is a tool of both clarity and humility — to “say” is not only to define, but also to listen to what is beyond words.