凜
- cold, severe, dignified;
- stern and upright;
Etymology
Phono-semantic compound:
冫 (ice radical) — semantic, coldness, chill, severity
稟 (여쭐 품 / 줄 품, 름) — phonetic, provides sound
稟 is phonetic in several Korean Sino-readings ending in -름, such as:
凜 (름)
廩 (곳집 름)
稟 (여쭐 품, also read 름 in Korean names)
The original sense is cold, chilling, then figuratively stern, upright, awe-commanding, especially in classical Chinese.
Usage in Korean
Not commonly used in everyday words, but extremely common in names ending in -름.
凜凜 (림림) — imposing, awe-inspiring, strictly dignified
凜然 (림연) — stern, upright, coldly dignified
凜寒 (림한) — bitter cold
凜烈 (림렬) — severe and intense (cold, wind, character)
Note: In Korean reading practice, variants 凜/凛 share the same 음.
Additional notes
凜 (U+F954) — compatibility character, not recommended
凜
차다
름
chada
reum
Kangxi radical:15, 冫 + 13
Strokes:15
Unicode:U+51DC
Cangjie input:
- 戈一卜田木 (IMYWD)
Composition:
- ⿰ 冫 稟