化
- to become, to transform;
Etymology
On the right is 匕 (“dagger”), which is actually a modified form of 人 (“person”) written upside down.
In ancient forms, the character was written without the left “person radical” (亻), in the form 𠤎, where the first stroke (丿) pierced through the second stroke (乚).
Because this could easily be confused with 匕 or 七 (“seven”), a left-side person radical (亻) was later added to clarify the form.
Usage in Korean
Words that derived from 化
- 강화(強化)–reinforcement; strengthening; tightening; intensification
- 강화하다(強化하다)–reinforce; strengthen; tighten; intensify
- 교화(敎化)–rehabilitation
- 교화되다(敎化되다)–be educated; be edified
- 다문화(多文化)–multiple cultures
- 단일화(單一化)–simplification; unification
- 문화(文化)–culture
- 문화어(文化語)–Culture Language
- 변화(變化)–change
- 보편화(普遍化)–generalization; becoming common; universal access
- 분화(分化)–division; segmentation
- 서양화(西洋化)–westernization
- 세속화(世俗化)–secularization
- 일반화(一般化)–generalization; popularization
- 정보화(情報化)–digitization
- 조화(造化)–harmony; magic
- 진화(進化)–development; advancement; evolution
- 화학(化學)–chemistry
Additional notes
This character often causes confusion in radical classification. Although it has 亻 on the left, in Chinese dictionaries it is classified under 人 (“person”) rather than 匕.
Mainland China tends to use the form 亻𠤎 more often than 亻匕, so Chinese dictionaries list it under the 人 radical.
It does not have a simplified form or a separate Unicode code.
化
될
화
doel
hwa
Kangxi radical:21, 匕 + 2
Strokes:4
Unicode:U+5316
Cangjie input:
- 人心 (OP)
Composition:
- ⿰ 亻 𠤎 (G V)
- ⿰ 亻 匕 (H T J K)