英

It is a phono-semantic compound, composed of:

艸 (“grass, plants”) as the semantic element;

央 (ang, “center”) as the phonetic element.

The original sense was “the blossom of a flower (the corolla),” symbolizing beauty and refinement. From this physical sense, it extended metaphorically to mean excellence, heroism, or prominence.

In modern Korean, 영 (英) is used in both literal and figurative senses, and also as a national abbreviation for England:

영국 (英國) – England, Britain

영웅 (英雄) – hero

영재 (英才) – gifted talent, prodigy

영예 (榮譽/英譽) – honor, glory

수영 (秀英) – a given name, “beautiful flower”