淳

A phono-semantic compound:

水 (water) — semantic component, suggests fluidity, clarity, and naturalness

享 (originally from 𦎧, “to mature; to be fully ripened”) — phonetic component, supplies the sound value (sun / chún) and the idea of ripeness or completeness

The earliest sense of 淳 refers to "clear, rich, and full-flowing water." From this physical meaning developed abstract senses such as:

- pure

- honest

- unadulterated

- simple and sincere

순박 (淳朴) — honest, simple, unsophisticated

순후 (淳厚) — kind and sincere

순량 (淳良) — gentle and good-natured

Despite being a rare dictionary character, 淳 is highly visible in names, making it culturally prominent, especially:

- generation names (항렬자)

- given names from the 1950s onward

Particularly frequent among Miryang Park clan (밀양 박씨) descendants.

Related characters:

純 — pure, unmixed

朴 — simple, unadorned

厚 — thick; kind

清 — clear, pure

真 — true, genuine

In Confucian and Han-dynasty prose, 淳 frequently describes:

- customs (風俗)

- human nature (人性)

風俗淳厚 — “Customs are simple and sincere.”

In Daoist-influenced texts, 淳 often implies:

- naturalness

- absence of artificial refinement

- closeness to the original state of humanity

This aligns with the Daoist ideal of 樸 (unhewn simplicity).