篆
seal-style characters
Readings
On'yomi
- テン
Kun'yomi
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Meaning
篆 centers on a specific historical calligraphic style: the seal script used for official seals and formal inscriptions. The meaning is narrow and technical, referring to this particular ancient character form.
Most common words using 篆
- 篆刻てんこく
seal engraving
- 篆書てんしょ
seal-engraving style (of writing Chinese characters); seal script
- 大篆だいてん
large seal script (dating from China's Spring and Autumn period onward)
- 小篆しょうてん
small seal script (arising during China's Warring States period)
- 篆てん
seal-engraving style (of writing Chinese characters); seal script
- 篆刻家てんこくか
seal engraver
- 篆字てんじ
seal script character
- 篆文てんぶん
seal script character
- 篆隷てんれい
seal style and ancient square style
Study
Etymology
篆 combines 竹 (bamboo) with 彖, a component associated with carving or engraving. Together they suggest characters carved into bamboo slips, which is consistent with the seal-script style used in ancient official documents.
Meaning mnemonic
The top 竹 is bamboo, and the bottom 彖 looks like a carved pattern. Picture ancient scribes carving seal-script characters into bamboo strips: 篆 is the seal-style writing they produced.
Reading mnemonic
For テン, imagine a ten-stamp seal: ten -> テン, and each stamp uses the seal-script style 篆.