颱

Phono-semantic compound:

風 (풍, “wind”) — semantic, indicating wind or storm.

台 (태, “platform, stage; phonetic tái”) — phonetic, giving the sound.

Originally coined as a regional character in southern Chinese dialects to represent the concept of typhoon.

태풍 (颱風) — typhoon, tropical storm

Rarely seen outside of this compound; many Koreans mistakenly believe the correct character is 太 (“great”) or 泰 (“peaceful”).

In practice, Korea often writes 台風 instead of 颱風, since 颱 was historically not used in Korean tradition.

China & Japan: commonly write 台風 (táifēng / taifū), omitting 風 from 颱.

Historically: before modern times, 颱 was limited to southern dialects of China, hence less familiar in Korea.

In South Korea, the use of 台風 on product names (e.g., “태풍냉면”) has sparked debate, since 颱 is considered the “correct” but less familiar form.

Regarded as a rare, high-level character, not part of everyday Hanja education.