<p>「敫」 does not have a solid basis for the meaning <em>ancient musical instrument</em>, but it looks like that meaning was derived from a transcription or translation error for a word which really did represent an ancient wind instrument. I'll present two interpretations as to where I think this translation originated from, and actually either interpretation arrives at the same conclusion.</p>
<hr />
<p>First interpretation: this is a mistranslation of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuowen_Jiezi" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>Shuowen Jiezi</em></a> definition.</p>
<blockquote>
<p><a href="https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=gb&amp;file=77390&amp;page=4" rel="nofollow noreferrer">《說文》：“敫，光景流也。从白，从放，<strong>讀若龠</strong>。”</a></p>
<p>「敫」: <em>flowing sunlight</em>. From semantic 「白」 and semantic 「放」. <strong>Read like 「龠」</strong>.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The <em>ancient musical instrument</em> definition is given at <a href="https://www.unicode.org/cgi-bin/GetUnihanData.pl?codepoint=%E6%95%AB" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Unicode</a>, and interprets the last sentence <strong>讀若龠</strong> as imparting both meaning and sound of 「龠」 (original character of 「籥」, as specified <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chinese_musical_instruments#Flutes" rel="nofollow noreferrer">at the Wikipedia page</a> as a kind of ancient flute), implying that 「敫」 (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reconstructions_of_Old_Chinese#Zhengzhang_(1981%E2%80%931995)" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Zhengzhang OC</a>: <strong>/*kleːwɢs/</strong>) is a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebus#Rebus_principle" rel="nofollow noreferrer">rebus</a> of 「龠」 (<strong>/*lowɢ/</strong>).</p>
<p>Actually, no such usage of 「敫」 as 「龠」 (籥) seems to be recorded in literature, so <strong>讀若龠</strong> should be interpreted as <em>having a similar/same sound to</em> 「龠」 rather than <em>is a rebus of</em> 「龠」. I would conclude that Unicode's English definition is wrong.</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>讀若Ｘ</strong> is a bit controversial in its interpretation, so there's probably more misunderstandings in some of Unicode's definitions.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>For reference, <em>Shuowen</em>'s definition of <em>flowing sunlight</em> is a phonetic loan, and its character analysis is incorrect. This definition probably refers to a word cognate to or the same as 「耀」 (<strong>/*lewɢs/</strong>) instead.</p>
<p><kbd><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warring_States_period" rel="nofollow noreferrer">戰國</a>・<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_(state)" rel="nofollow noreferrer">秦</a><br>石刻<br><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/MFFip.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/MFFip.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a><br>詛楚文・淵湫<br>　</kbd><kbd><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_dynasty" rel="nofollow noreferrer">秦朝</a><br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo_and_wooden_slips" rel="nofollow noreferrer">簡</a><br><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/wLzd3.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/wLzd3.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a><br>日書乙種36<br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuihudi_Qin_bamboo_texts" rel="nofollow noreferrer">睡虎地秦簡</a></kbd><kbd><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_dynasty#Western_Han" rel="nofollow noreferrer">西漢</a><br>簡<br><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/czG9s.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/czG9s.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a><br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Bin%27s_Art_of_War" rel="nofollow noreferrer">孫臏兵法</a><br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yinqueshan_Han_Slips" rel="nofollow noreferrer">銀雀山漢簡</a></kbd><kbd>今<br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_script" rel="nofollow noreferrer">楷</a><br><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/UJHBi.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/UJHBi.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a><br><br>　</kbd></p>
<p>「敫」 is constructed from semantic 「皃」 (<em>appearance</em>, here representing <em>something/someone else</em>) and semantic 「攴・攵」 (<em>to hit</em>), indicating the meaning <em>to strike/hit something or someone else</em>. The bottom part of 「皃」 (儿・人) was later corrupted into 「方」.</p>
<p>「敫」 is the original character of 「撽」, and is a similar or the same word as 「敲」.</p>
<hr />
<p>Second interpretation: 「敫」 was misidentified as 「㰾」 during data entry (they kind of look similar), which <a href="http://www.unicode.org/cgi-bin/GetUnihanData.pl?codepoint=3C3E" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Unicode</a> also gives a definition of</p>
<blockquote>
<p>a kind of music instrument in ancient times</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Thankfully, this definition has a more solid basis. From <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhengzitong" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>Zhengzitong</em></a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>《正字通》：“今樂器壎箎之屬有㰾子...”</p>
<p>Today (time of authorship of <em>Zhengzitong</em>), there are instruments of the type 「壎」 and 「箎」 (ancient wind instruments) called 「㰾子」...</p>
</blockquote>
<hr />
<p><strong>References:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>季旭昇《說文新證》</li>
<li><a href="http://xiaoxue.iis.sinica.edu.tw/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">小學堂</a></li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T14:30:49.770Z
Any idea what a「㰾子」may have looked like?
Mou某
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T14:41:41.230Z
@user3306356 㰾 is a phonetic loan for 嘂, which is a large 塤 (variant character of 壎). You can use your imagination from this description: 《爾雅》注曰： ‘燒土為之， 大如鵝子， 銳上平底， 形如稱錘， 六孔， 小者如雞子， 大者曰嘂。 Alternatively, you can Google image search 壎.
dROOOze
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T14:51:29.447Z
I guess the *Erya annotation* description translates to: *Made from ceramic, as big as a (gosling or goose egg), the top is sharp, the bottom is flat, the shape is like [a counterweight](https://www.google.com/search?q=%E7%A8%B1%E9%8C%98&rlz=1C1CHWA_enNZ604NZ604&sxsrf=ACYBGNTFZsUj4ub8z668fBKvTR4AmwIFBQ:1580050048536&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjs6fqOwaHnAhUXzTgGHS_RBPgQ_AUoAXoECAsQAw&cshid=1580050192041274&biw=1920&bih=937), with six air holes, ...*
dROOOze
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T15:06:35.480Z
Maybe like an ancient ocarina of sorts?
Mou某
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T15:10:22.257Z
In a manner of speaking. "Ocarina" has a lot of different shapes, 塤/壎 certainly isn't just a random shape. If they sound similar, then I guess it is a kind of ocarina (they seem to be classified as the same kind of instrument on Wikipedia)
dROOOze
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T15:22:09.207Z
https://www.soundofmountain.com/professional-chinese-clay-flute-ancient-xun-instrument-egg-pattern-ocarina-10-holes/ Professional Chinese Clay Flute Ancient Xun Instrument Egg Pattern Ocarina 10 Holes, so maybe: egg ocarina?
Mou某
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T15:23:35.907Z
gotcha, egg-shaped clay/ceramic ocarina. nice description
dROOOze
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T15:26:14.047Z
I think Totoro had one of those & probably Link (i.e.: Zelda) too, although maybe Link's wasn't egg-shaped.
Mou某
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-28T20:16:18.670Z
Thanks! This is all quite interesting!
2ndQuantized
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-01-26T11:15:14.270Z
2020-02-10T01:28:42.107Z
2020-06-17T09:50:11.587Z
dROOOze
<p>I found the character 敫 whose definition apparently is "ancient musical instrument" according to <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E6%95%AB" rel="noreferrer">Wiktionary</a>.</p>

<p>However, the English Wikipedia's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chinese_musical_instruments" rel="noreferrer">List of Chinese musical instruments</a> doesn't seem to include either it or an instrument whose name includes that character. The closest name (by pinyin) includes "角".</p>

<p>I found a <a href="https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E6%95%AB" rel="noreferrer">Baidu Encyclopedia page</a> and a <a href="https://zh.m.wiktionary.org/zh-hans/%E6%95%AB" rel="noreferrer">Chinese Wiktionary page</a>, but I can't understand them (and Google translate doesn't help) or the information isn't there.</p>

<p>Does anyone know what instrument or class of instruments "敫" refers to?</p>

<characters><history>
What musical instrument does "敫" refer to?
# What musical instrument does "敫" refer to?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-01-25)

I found the character 敫 whose definition apparently is "ancient musical instrument" according to [Wiktionary](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E6%95%AB).

However, the English Wikipedia's [List of Chinese musical instruments](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chinese_musical_instruments) doesn't seem to include either it or an instrument whose name includes that character. The closest name (by pinyin) includes "角".

I found a [Baidu Encyclopedia page](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E6%95%AB) and a [Chinese Wiktionary page](https://zh.m.wiktionary.org/zh-hans/%E6%95%AB), but I can't understand them (and Google translate doesn't help) or the information isn't there.

Does anyone know what instrument or class of instruments "敫" refers to?

**Tags:** characters, history

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2020-01-26. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

「敫」 does not have a solid basis for the meaning *ancient musical instrument*, but it looks like that meaning was derived from a transcription or translation error for a word which really did represent an ancient wind instrument. I'll present two interpretations as to where I think this translation originated from, and actually either interpretation arrives at the same conclusion.

---

First interpretation: this is a mistranslation of the [*Shuowen Jiezi*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuowen_Jiezi) definition.

> [《說文》：“敫，光景流也。从白，从放，**讀若龠**。”](https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=gb&file=77390&page=4)
>
> 「敫」: *flowing sunlight*. From semantic 「白」 and semantic 「放」. **Read like 「龠」**.

The *ancient musical instrument* definition is given at [Unicode](https://www.unicode.org/cgi-bin/GetUnihanData.pl?codepoint=%E6%95%AB), and interprets the last sentence **讀若龠** as imparting both meaning and sound of 「龠」 (original character of 「籥」, as specified [at the Wikipedia page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chinese_musical_instruments#Flutes) as a kind of ancient flute), implying that 「敫」 ([Zhengzhang OC](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reconstructions_of_Old_Chinese#Zhengzhang_(1981%E2%80%931995)): **/\*kleːwɢs/**) is a [rebus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebus#Rebus_principle) of 「龠」 (**/\*lowɢ/**).

Actually, no such usage of 「敫」 as 「龠」 (籥) seems to be recorded in literature, so **讀若龠** should be interpreted as *having a similar/same sound to* 「龠」 rather than *is a rebus of* 「龠」. I would conclude that Unicode's English definition is wrong.

> **讀若Ｘ** is a bit controversial in its interpretation, so there's probably more misunderstandings in some of Unicode's definitions.

For reference, *Shuowen*'s definition of *flowing sunlight* is a phonetic loan, and its character analysis is incorrect. This definition probably refers to a word cognate to or the same as 「耀」 (**/\*lewɢs/**) instead.

`戰國・秦  
石刻  
![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/MFFip.png)  
詛楚文・淵湫``秦朝  
簡  
![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/wLzd3.png)  
日書乙種36  
睡虎地秦簡``西漢  
簡  
![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/czG9s.png)  
孫臏兵法  
銀雀山漢簡``今  
楷  
![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/UJHBi.png)`

「敫」 is constructed from semantic 「皃」 (*appearance*, here representing *something/someone else*) and semantic 「攴・攵」 (*to hit*), indicating the meaning *to strike/hit something or someone else*. The bottom part of 「皃」 (儿・人) was later corrupted into 「方」.

「敫」 is the original character of 「撽」, and is a similar or the same word as 「敲」.

---

Second interpretation: 「敫」 was misidentified as 「㰾」 during data entry (they kind of look similar), which [Unicode](http://www.unicode.org/cgi-bin/GetUnihanData.pl?codepoint=3C3E) also gives a definition of

> a kind of music instrument in ancient times

Thankfully, this definition has a more solid basis. From [*Zhengzitong*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhengzitong):

> 《正字通》：“今樂器壎箎之屬有㰾子...”
>
> Today (time of authorship of *Zhengzitong*), there are instruments of the type 「壎」 and 「箎」 (ancient wind instruments) called 「㰾子」...

---

**References:**

* 季旭昇《說文新證》
* [小學堂](http://xiaoxue.iis.sinica.edu.tw/)

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Any idea what a「㰾子」may have looked like?  
> **username_1**: @user3306356 㰾 is a phonetic loan for 嘂, which is a large 塤 (variant character of 壎). You can use your imagination from this description: 《爾雅》注曰： ‘燒土為之， 大如鵝子， 銳上平底， 形如稱錘， 六孔， 小者如雞子， 大者曰嘂。 Alternatively, you can Google image search 壎.  
> **username_1**: I guess the *Erya annotation* description translates to: *Made from ceramic, as big as a (gosling or goose egg), the top is sharp, the bottom is flat, the shape is like [a counterweight](https://www.google.com/search?q=%E7%A8%B1%E9%8C%98&rlz=1C1CHWA_enNZ604NZ604&sxsrf=ACYBGNTFZsUj4ub8z668fBKvTR4AmwIFBQ:1580050048536&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjs6fqOwaHnAhUXzTgGHS_RBPgQ_AUoAXoECAsQAw&cshid=1580050192041274&biw=1920&bih=937), with six air holes, ...*  
> **username_2**: Maybe like an ancient ocarina of sorts?  
> **username_1**: In a manner of speaking. "Ocarina" has a lot of different shapes, 塤/壎 certainly isn't just a random shape. If they sound similar, then I guess it is a kind of ocarina (they seem to be classified as the same kind of instrument on Wikipedia)  
> **username_2**: https://www.soundofmountain.com/professional-chinese-clay-flute-ancient-xun-instrument-egg-pattern-ocarina-10-holes/ Professional Chinese Clay Flute Ancient Xun Instrument Egg Pattern Ocarina 10 Holes, so maybe: egg ocarina?  
> **username_1**: gotcha, egg-shaped clay/ceramic ocarina. nice description  
> **username_2**: I think Totoro had one of those & probably Link (i.e.: Zelda) too, although maybe Link's wasn't egg-shaped.  
> **username_0**: Thanks! This is all quite interesting!  

---

