鬚

A phono-semantic compound:

髟 (long hair) — semantic component

須 (수) — phonetic component

The character originally described long, fine facial hair. Because whiskers are thin and protruding, the meaning later expanded metaphorically to slender, hairlike forms.

In Korean, it often appears in classical compounds or technical / literary vocabulary.

수염 (鬚髥) — beard; whiskers; moustache

용수철 (龍鬚鐵) — spring (coil; wire spring)

Related characters:

髭 — moustache

髯 — long beard

毛 — hair; fur

須 — must; need (phonetic relative)

鬚 emphasizes shape and texture (fine, hair-like), not just body hair.

Figurative usage survives in compounds referring to thin metal wires or coils.

In Classical Chinese, 鬚 is often paired with 眉 (eyebrows) or 髯 (long beard) to signify age, dignity, or wisdom.

White beard imagery is strongly associated with sages, elders, and officials.

In East Asian visual culture, whiskers symbolize authority and experience.

Classical citations:

《後漢書》 (Book of the Later Han)

「鬚眉交白。」

“His beard and eyebrows had turned white.”

《史記》 (Records of the Grand Historian)

「丈夫生當帶三尺之劍，立不世之功；死則鬚眉皓白。」

“A true man should live bearing a three-foot sword and achieve unmatched merit; dying with beard and brows white.”

䰅, 䰑