beijing okay

一天一字
(A mini Chinese lesson
specially designed for
people not intending to actually
learn the language.)



Today's character is:
人

人, simply enough, means "person." It evolved from a rough stick figure to it's present form, which is more like a pair of legs. 人 is frequently used in compounds to make a variety of works having to do with occupations, nationality or genders. It's one of the most common words in the language.

To indicate a woman you can add a 女 (a pictograph of a pregnant woman, although much altered from it's ancient state) before 人. For a man add a 男 (a pictograph comprised of a field made of four plots and an arm bend and flexing) Simple enough.

人 is pronounced ren? (like you're asking a question)