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Kotomora

狄

barbarian

Strokes7

Readings

On'yomi

  • テキ

Kun'yomi

  • えびす

Meaning

狄 centers on the concept of a barbarian, specifically referring to non-Chinese northern tribes in ancient contexts. It carries a sense of foreignness and lack of civilization from a historical Chinese perspective.

Most common words using 狄

  • 北狄ほくてき

    Northern Di people (Zhou dynasty term for non-ethnic Chinese to the north); northern barbarians

  • 夷狄いてき

    barbarians; aliens

  • 夷蛮戎狄いばんじゅうてき

    the barbarians beyond the borders of old China

  • 狄てき

    Di people (Zhou dynasty term for non-ethnic Chinese to the north)

Explore all words using 狄 →

Study

Etymology

狄 combines 犭 (dog/beast radical) with 火 (fire). Historically, it was used to name northern non-Chinese tribes, likely with a pejorative animal association. The exact reason for the 火 component is uncertain.

Meaning mnemonic

A beast-like (犭) person with fire (火) in hand, representing an uncivilized barbarian from the wild northern lands.

Reading mnemonic

For テキ, imagine a barbarian throwing a tech (テキ) gadget into the fire, confused by modern civilization.