芥

芥 (Kangxi radical 140, 艸+4, 8 strokes in traditional Chinese and Korean, 7 strokes in mainland China and Japanese, cangjie input 廿人中中 (TOLL) or 難廿人中中 (XTOLL), four-corner 4422₈, composition ⿱艹介)

• 𠶋, 𦄶

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 1019, character 31
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 30715
• Dae Jaweon: page 1477, character 14
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 5, page 3182, character 6
• Unihan data for U+82A5

Historical forms of the character 芥
Warring States	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)
Qin slip script	Small seal script

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kreːds) : semantic 艸 (“grass, plant”) + phonetic 介 (OC *kreːds) – a type of plant.

The meaning "mustard green" is attested earliest in the Book of Rites; "small grass" in Zuo zhuan (Ai 1).

Schuessler (2007) compares it to Middle Korean 갓 (kas), Proto-Southwestern Tai *ka:tᴰ (> Thai กาด (gàat), Lao ກາດ (kāt), Shan ၵၢတ်ႇ (kàat)), Proto-Vietic *kaːs (> Vietnamese cải, Muong cái, & Thavung kajh¹). However, all those foreign items might have been loaned from Late Old Chinese or Eastern Han Chinese (as proposed by Pittayaporn for *ka:tᴰ),

芥

1. mustard greens (Brassica juncea)

   • 膾：春用蔥，秋用芥。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     脍：春用葱，秋用芥。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Book of Rites, c. 4^th – 2^nd century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Kuài: chūn yòng cōng, qiū yòng jiè. [Pinyin]

     Mince was made in spring, with onions; in autumn, with the mustard plant.

2. (literary) small grass

   • 臣聞：「國之興也，視民如傷，是其福也。其亡也，以民為土芥，是其禍也。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     臣闻：「国之兴也，视民如伤，是其福也。其亡也，以民为土芥，是其祸也。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Commentary of Zuo, c. 4^th century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Chén wén: “Guó zhī xìng yě, shì mín rú shāng, shì qí fú yě. Qí wáng yě, yǐ mín wèi tǔjiè, shì qí huò yě.” [Pinyin]

     I have heard that States flourish when they regard their people as if apprehensive of their receiving hurt:;`——that brings prosperity. States again perish when they treat their people as earth or grass; —that brings calamity.

   • 君之視臣如土芥，則臣視君如寇讎 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     君之视臣如土芥，则臣视君如寇雠 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Mencius, c. 4^th century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     jūn zhī shì chén rú tǔjiè, zé chén shì jūn rú kòuchóu [Pinyin]

     When the prince regards his ministers as earth or as grass, they regard him as a robber and an enemy.

   • 覆杯水於坳堂之上，則芥為之舟。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     覆杯水于坳堂之上，则芥为之舟。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Zhuangzi, circa 3^rd – 2^nd centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Fù bēi shuǐ yú àotáng zhī shàng, zé jiè wéi zhī zhōu. [Pinyin]

     Tip water from a cup into a cavity, and a leaf of grass will float on it like were a boat.

3. (literary, figurative) triviality

• → Proto-Tai: *kaːtᴰ (“mustard greens”)
  • Proto-Southwestern Tai: *kaːtᴰ (“mustard greens”)
    • Lao: ກາດ (kāt)
    • Shan: ၵၢတ်ႇ (kàat)
    • Thai: กาด (gàat)

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names)

1. mustard
2. rubbish, trash, dust

• Go-on: け (ke)
• Kan-on: かい (kai)
• Kun: あくた (akuta, 芥); からし (karashi, 芥); ごみ (gomi, 芥)

芥 • (gae) (hangeul 개, revised gae, McCune–Reischauer kae, Yale kay)

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芥: Hán Nôm readings: giới

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.