Origin

This character combines a heart radical at the bottom, which in kanji classifies emotions and mental states, with the component 禺 at the top that serves as a sound hint for the pronunciation. The character's meaning of foolishness or stupidity comes from the semantic domain of the heart radical—ancient writers associated the heart with intellect and judgment. By pairing the "heart" classifier with a sound component, the character expresses the concept of a foolish or absent mind.