倻

Functions primarily as a phonetic loan character rather than conveying an independent semantic meaning.

Phono-semantic compound:

人 (사람 인, “person”) — semantic, representing “human.”

耶 (어조사 야, “ya”) — phonetic, providing the sound 야.

Originally employed in transcriptions of proper nouns, especially place names and ethnonyms.

가야 (伽倻) — Gaya confederation, a group of polities in southern Korea (1st–6th century CE).

Found in historical documents such as 삼국사기 (Samguk Sagi) and 삼국유사 (Samguk Yusa).

In this context, 倻 does not mean “country” by itself but is used in combination (伽倻) as a transcription of sound.

Related character: 伽 (절 가 / more broadly phonetic ga), often paired with 倻 to form Gaya’s name.

倻 is rare in modern usage outside of historical or linguistic contexts.