傭

Phono-semantic compound composed of:

人 (사람 인) — semantic element, referring to a person or human activity.

庸 (떳떳할 용) — phonetic element, providing the sound yōng and implying normal, ordinary, or standard.

《說文解字》 (Shuowen Jiezi):

「傭，使也。从人，庸聲。」

“傭 means to employ or make use of; composed of 人 (person) and phonetic 庸.”

Thus, the character originally denoted a person engaged for service or labor — someone used in the performance of work.

Semantic development:

Literal:

- to hire or employ a person for labor.

- to be hired; to serve under another.

Extended:

- to make use of, to employ generally (e.g., ideas, resources).

- to be balanced or even (균등하다), an older and rarer sense preserved in alternative reading 충 (chung).

傭人 (용인) — servant, employee

雇傭 (고용) — employment, to hire

傭工 (용공) — laborer, hired worker

傭金 (용금) — wages, pay

傭僕 (용복) — domestic servant

傭兵 (용병) — mercenary (lit. “hired soldier”)

均傭 (균용) — evenly paid, fair employment

In pre-Qin China, 傭 referred to temporary or contractual workers — particularly those who labored for food or pay, distinct from slaves (奴) or retainers (僮).

《禮記·王制》 (Book of Rites):

「凡民傭作於公家者，以日計功。」

“All commoners hired for public work are paid according to daily labor.”

This describes early administrative regulation of wages — evidence that hired labor (傭作) was an established social practice.

《孟子·盡心上》 (Mencius):

「有恆者，不傭而食。」

“He who has constancy does not live by hired labor.”

Mencius contrasts the virtuous, self-reliant man with those who must sell their strength for sustenance — illustrating the moral dignity of independence.

In later dynasties, 傭 also extended to intellectual contexts, describing hired scribes or teachers, hence phrases like 書傭 (“copyist”) and 學傭 (“private tutor”).

Symbolic and philosophical interpretation:

In the Confucian moral sense, 傭 carries implications of social order and mutual dependence — the relationship between employer and employed as a model of reciprocal responsibility.

A 君子 (noble man) may employ others (用人), but must do so justly, while a hired person (傭人) must act faithfully.

《管子·牧民》 (Guanzi, “On Governing the People”):

「用人者，務於得其心；傭人者，務於盡其力。」

“He who employs others must win their hearts; he who is employed must give his full strength.”

A balance between duty and trust — illustrating how even labor relationships were framed as moral harmony under Heaven.

It embodies the practical ethics of service and employment — the social cooperation between those who hire and those who serve.