券

Formed as a phono-semantic compound combining:

刀 (칼 도) — meaning “knife” or “to cut,” indicating the act of marking or dividing a document; and

龹 (밥 뭉칠 권) — the phonetic component, representing the sound (quàn / 권).

The composition symbolizes a document divided by a cut — a practice where two matching halves of a contract were made by slicing a bamboo slip or paper, each party retaining one portion. When matched, the two halves proved authenticity.

Hence the literal idea of “a cut document” or “a split certificate.”

문서 권 (券) — document, certificate

순우리말 — 글월 (old native word meaning “letter” or “document”)

증권 (證券) — certificate, security, stock

표권 (票券) — ticket, pass, voucher

계약권 (契約券) — contract document

In historical contexts, 券 referred to land deeds, contracts of sale, and other forms of written proof.

The practice of cutting a 券 (document) in half as a form of contract verification dates back to ancient China’s Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods.

Each party held one half of the split document; when rejoined, the matching edges confirmed authenticity — a tradition also echoed in the term 合同 (matching halves).

This symbolic “cut document” system represents one of the earliest forms of contractual security, bridging writing, law, and trust.

Over time, 券 evolved from denoting “a physically cut proof” to “any document verifying rights or transactions.”