監

A compound ideograph:

臣 (“eye, servant”) — depicts an eye watching.

人 (“person”) — person kneeling or present.

血 (“blood”) or 皿 (“vessel”) — container of liquid.

Oracle bone forms: show a person with an emphasized eye (臣) kneeling in front of a vessel of water, gazing at their reflection.

In bronze inscriptions, 臣 and 人 became separated.

By the seal script stage, stabilized into the form resembling 臥 above a container.

In clerical script, strokes shifted into the modern shape.

When appearing above in compounds, 監 transforms (as in 覽, 鑑).

監視 (감시) — to supervise, to watch

監督 (감독) — supervision, director

監獄 (감옥) — prison

監察 (감찰) — inspection, oversight

囚監 (수감) — imprisonment

總監 (총감) — commissioner, inspector-general

Polyphonic character:

jiān (평성): to watch, inspect, oversee

jiàn (거성): office of supervision, prison; also as a loan for 鑑 (“mirror, to examine”)

The metaphor of water as a mirror gave rise to the meaning of reflection, both literal and figurative.

Related characters:

鑑 — mirror, to examine

覽 — to look at, to survey

𰯲 (when used at the top of a character)

鑑