Origin

This character combines the radical for cattle (牛) on the left with a sound component (義) on the right that hints at pronunciation. The cattle radical makes sense because in ancient times, cattle were among the most valuable animals offered as sacrifices in religious rituals. By pairing this meaningful image with a phonetic guide, the character efficiently conveys both what is being sacrificed and how the word should sound.

AI-generated (claude-haiku-4-5), not yet reviewed. Formation type (automated guess): Phono-semantic (meaning + sound hint).