迭

Phono-semantic compound:

辵 (쉬엄쉬엄 갈 착) — semantic component, denoting movement, walking, or progression.

失 (잃을 실) — phonetic component, giving the sound dié / jil and suggesting swift or changing motion.

Thus, 迭 originally depicted a person or thing moving forward, yielding place to another, signifying alternating movement or exchange.

In Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字):

「迭，更也。从辵，失聲。」

“迭 means to alternate or to replace; composed of 辵 (‘walk’) and phonetic 失.”

The early sense was closely tied to recurrence in movement, later generalized to all kinds of alternation — temporal, positional, or relational.

Semantic evolution:

Literal: to move and replace; to take turns in movement.

Extended: to alternate, exchange, or repeat successively.

Abstract: to describe cyclical recurrence in time, emotion, or natural process (禍福相迭, 寒暑迭至).

Modern: used in compounds for repetition (迭代) or succession (更迭).

迭代 (질대) — iteration; repetition

交迭 (교질) — alternating; interchanging

更迭 (갱질) — succession; change of persons or things in office

迭起 (질기) — occurring one after another; arising repeatedly

迭變 (질변) — continual change; fluctuation

頻迭 (빈질) — frequent alternation; continual recurrence

Kangxi Dictionary (康熙字典, vol. 1043):

「迭，更也，易也。」

“迭 means to change, to alternate, or to replace.”

Book of Han (漢書 · 景十三王傳):

「更迭守之。」

“They guarded it in turns” — 更迭 (succession or alternation) appears as a fixed phrase meaning to take turns on duty.

Zuo Commentary (左傳 · 僖公三十二年):

「禍福相迭。」

“Misfortune and fortune succeed one another.” — illustrating 迭 as the cyclical alternation of opposites.

Huainanzi (淮南子 · 天文訓):

「寒暑迭至。」

“Cold and heat arrive alternately” — used to express the cosmic rhythm of alternation.

In Confucian political thought, 迭 symbolizes the orderly transition of authority — the alternation of rulers or ministers to preserve balance (更迭不亂 “succession without disorder”).

In Daoist cosmology, it represents the cyclical transformation of Yin and Yang, as expressed in 易經 principles: “生生不息，相迭而化” — “They generate endlessly, transforming by alternation.”

In literature, 迭 conveys rhythmic recurrence — waves, seasons, fortunes, or emotions “rising and falling in turn.”

From ancient governance (更迭守之) to natural rhythm (寒暑迭至), 迭 expresses the principle of alternating continuity — the perpetual dance of change and renewal that underlies both human affairs and the cosmos.