# 巫

| 巫 | U+5DEB, &#24043; CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5DEB |
| ← 巪 [U+5DEA] | CJK Unified Ideographs | 巬 → [U+5DEC] |

## Translingual
### Han character

巫 (Kangxi radical 48, 工+4, 7 strokes, cangjie input 一人人 (MOO), four-corner 1010$_8$, composition ⿻工从)

#### Derived characters

* 𭇹, 𡷯, 𢃀, 𭰘, 𭸊, 𬂳, 𦈊, 誣(诬), 𬋲
* 覡(觋), 𨿏, 鵐(鹀), 莁, 筮, 毉, 𪚠, 靈, 𠳄, 𡋻, 𢀣, 𧨈, 𭏞, 𨽙, 𨽭, 𭩗, 𥽛, 𬝶, 𧈀

#### References

* Kangxi Dictionary: page 325, character 19
* Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 8728
* Dae Jaweon: page 629, character 7
* Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 412, character 8
* Unihan data for U+5DEB

## Chinese
### Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 巫 :
| Shang | Western Zhou | Warring States | Warring States | Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) | Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) | Liushutong (compiled in Ming) |
| Oracle bone script | Bronze inscriptions | Chu slip and silk script | Qin slip script | Ancient script | Small seal script | Transcribed ancient scripts |
| | Old Chinese |
| 巫 | *ma |
| 誣 | *ma |
| 莁 | *ma |
| 鵐 | *ma |
Pictogram (象形) – originally two pieces of jade crossed over each other as used in ancient shamanistic practices focused around sacrifices.
As an alternative, according to Zou Jingheng (鄒景蘅), they represent two 工 crossed over, hence two tools made of bamboo or yarrow stalks; the original meaning should be partly preserved in 筮.

### Etymology
#### “shaman; witch”

    This word initially referred to spirit medium/shaman of either sex, but eventually female when contrasted with 覡 (OC *ɡeːɡ, “male shaman”). Various hypotheses exist regarding its etymology (Schuessler, 2007):
   * Cognate with 舞 (OC *maʔ, “to dance”), derived from the original form 無 (OC *ma, “to dance; not to have”), perhaps due to the fact that shamans could engage in ritual dances.
   * Cognate with 母 (OC *mɯʔ, “female”).
   * Cognate with འབའ་མོ ('ba' mo, “sorceress”), from Tibetan འབའ་པོ ('ba' po, “magician, sorcerer”).
   * Cognate with 誣 (OC *ma, “to deceive”).
   * Victor Mair (1990) and Jao Tsung-I (1990) proposed that this is a loanword from Old Persian 𐎶𐎦𐎢𐏁 (maguš) (more at Wikipedia: Magus). (Mair, 1990; Mair, 2012).
    Thai หมอ (mɔ̌ɔ, “doctor”) < Proto-Tai *ʰmo:ᴬ (“shaman”) is generally assumed to be a Sino-Tibetan loan (Pittayaporn, 2014). More at Wu (shaman), Magi#In Chinese sources, magus.

#### “Malay”

    Clipping of 巫來由／巫来由 (wūláiyóu), a transcription of Malay Melayu.

### Pronunciation

* Mandarin
    (Pinyin): wū, wú (wu$^1$, wu$^2$)
    (Zhuyin): ㄨ, ㄨˊ
* Cantonese
    (Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): mou$^4$
    (Taishan, Wiktionary): mu$^3$
* Hakka
    (Sixian, PFS): mù
    (Hailu, HRS): mu
    (Meixian, Guangdong): mu$^2$
* Eastern Min (BUC): ŭ
* Southern Min
    (Hokkien, POJ): bû
    (Teochew, Peng'im): bhu$^5$
* Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): $^6$vu
* Mandarin
** (Standard Chinese)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: wū
*** Zhuyin: ㄨ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: wu
*** Wade–Giles: wu$^1$
*** Yale: wū
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: u
*** Palladius: у (u)
*** Sinological IPA : /u⁵⁵/
** (Standard Chinese, literary variant in Taiwan)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: wú
*** Zhuyin: ㄨˊ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: wú
*** Wade–Giles: wu$^2$
*** Yale: wú
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: wu
*** Palladius: у (u)
*** Sinological IPA : /u³⁵/
* Cantonese
** (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
*** Jyutping: mou$^4$
*** Yale: mòuh
*** Cantonese Pinyin: mou$^4$
*** Guangdong Romanization: mou$^4$
*** Sinological IPA : /mou̯²¹/
** (Taishanese, Taicheng)
*** Wiktionary: mu$^3$
*** Sinological IPA : /ᵐbu²²/
* Hakka
** (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
*** Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: mù
*** Hakka Romanization System: mu$^ˇ$
*** Hagfa Pinyim: mu$^2$
*** Sinological IPA: /mu¹¹/
** (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
*** Hakka Romanization System: mu
*** Sinological IPA: /mu⁵⁵/
** (Meixian)
*** Guangdong: mu$^2$
*** Sinological IPA: /mu¹¹/
* Eastern Min
** (Fuzhou)
*** Bàng-uâ-cê: ŭ
*** Sinological IPA : /u⁵⁵/
* Southern Min
** (Hokkien)
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bû
*** Tâi-lô: bû
*** Phofsit Daibuun: buu
*** IPA (Xiamen): /bu²⁴/
*** IPA (Quanzhou): /bu²⁴/
*** IPA (Zhangzhou): /bu¹³/
*** IPA (Taipei): /bu²⁴/
*** IPA (Kaohsiung): /bu²³/
** (Teochew)
*** Peng'im: bhu$^5$
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: bû
*** Sinological IPA : /bu⁵⁵/
* Wu
** (Northern: Shanghai)
*** Wugniu: $^6$vu
*** MiniDict: vu$^去$
*** Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): $^3$vu
*** Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /vu²³/
* Middle Chinese: mju
Rime :
| Character | 巫 |
| Reading # | 1/1 |
| Initial (聲) | 明 (4) |
| Final (韻) | 虞 (24) |
| Tone (調) | Level (Ø) |
| Openness (開合) | Closed |
| Division (等) | III |
| Fanqie | 武夫切 |
| Baxter | mju |
| Reconstructions ||
| Zhengzhang Shangfang | /mɨo/ |
| Pan Wuyun | /mio/ |
| Shao Rongfen | /mio/ |
| Edwin Pulleyblank | /muə̆/ |
| Li Rong | /mio/ |
| Wang Li | /mĭu/ |
| Bernhard Karlgren | /mi̯u/ |
| Expected Mandarin Reflex | wú |
| Expected Cantonese Reflex | mou$^4$ |
* Old Chinese
    (Baxter–Sagart): /*C.m(r)[o]/
    (Zhengzhang): /*ma/
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014) :
| Character | 巫 |
| Reading # | 1/1 |
| Modern Beijing (Pinyin) | wū |
| Middle Chinese | ‹ mju › |
| Old Chinese | /*C.m(r)[o]/ |
| English | magician |
| Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary. ||
Zhengzhang system (2003) :
| Character | 巫 |
| Reading # | 1/1 |
| No. | 13062 |
| Phonetic component | 巫 |
| Rime group | 魚 |
| Rime subdivision | 0 |
| Corresponding MC rime | 無 |
| Old Chinese | /*ma/ |

### Definitions

巫
* shaman; witch; sorcerer; wizard
* witch doctor
* (chiefly Malaysia, Singapore) Malay; Melayu; relating to ethnic Malays
    巫統／巫统 ― wūtǒng ― United Malays National Organisation, UMNO
* a surname
    巫啟賢／巫启贤 ― Wū Qǐxián ― Eric Moo (Malaysian Chinese singer-songwriter)

#### Descendants

* → English: wu

### Compounds

* 大巫嫗 / 大巫妪
* 女巫 (nǚwū)
* 小巫見大巫 / 小巫见大巫 (xiǎowújiàndàwú)
* 巫人 (wūrén)
* 巫咸
* 巫妖 (wūyāo)
* 巫婆 (wūpó, “witch, sorceress”)
* 巫子
* 巫山 (Wūshān, “Wushan”)
* 巫山之夢 / 巫山之梦
* 巫山之會 / 巫山之会
* 巫山洛浦
* 巫山雲雨 / 巫山云雨 (wūshān yúnyǔ)
* 巫峰
* 巫峽 / 巫峡 (Wūxiá)
* 巫師 / 巫师 (wūshī, “sorcerer”)
* 巫教 (wūjiào)
* 巫族
* 巫樂 / 巫乐
* 巫毒教 (wūdújiào, “voodoo”)
* 巫溪 (Wūxī)
* 巫神 (wūshén)
* 巫祝 (wūzhù)
* 巫蠱 / 巫蛊
* 巫蠱之獄 / 巫蛊之狱
* 巫術 / 巫术 (wūshù, “shamanism, witchcraft, sorcery”)
* 巫裔 (wūyì)
* 巫覡 / 巫觋 (wūxí)
* 巫語 / 巫语 (wūyǔ)
* 巫醫 / 巫医 (wūyī, “witch doctor”)
* 祝巫
* 神巫 (shénwū)
* 雲雨巫山 / 云雨巫山

### References

* “巫”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎, 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

## Japanese
### Kanji

(Jinmeiyō kanji)
* shaman
* witch, sorcerer

#### Readings

* Go-on: む (mu)
* Kan-on: ぶ (bu)
* Kan’yō-on: ふ (fu)
* Kun: みこ (miko, 巫)、かんなぎ (kannagi, 巫)

#### Compounds

* 県(あがた)巫(みこ) (agatamiko)
* 巫子(いちこ) (ichiko)
* 大(おお)御(み)巫(かむこ) (ōmikamuko)
* 男(おとこ)巫(みこ) (otokomiko)
* 乙女(おとめ)巫(みこ) (otomemiko)
* 女(おんな)巫(みこ) (onnamiko)
* 巫覡(きね) (kine)
* 里(さと)巫(みこ) (satomiko)
* 巫鳥(しとど) (shitodo)
* 女巫(じょふ) (jofu)
* 巫(すずし)女(め) (suzushime)
* 巫女(のろ) (noro)
* 肘(ひじ)巫(かんなぎ) (hijikannagi)
* 巫医(ふい) (fui): a shrine maiden and a doctor; someone who is both a shrine maiden and a doctor
* 巫峡(ふきょう) (fukyō): Wu Gorge (the second of China's Three Gorges)
* 巫覡(ふげき) (fugeki): male and female sorcerers and shamans
* 巫蠱(ふこ) (fuko)
* 巫山(ふざん) (Fuzan): Wushan, the Wu Mountains, a mountainous area in China along the Wu Gorge
* 巫山雲雨(ふざんうんう) (Fuzan'un'u)
* 巫山之夢(ふざんのゆめ) (Fuzannoyume)
* 巫史(ふし) (fushi)
* 巫呪(ふじゅ) (fuju)
* 巫祝(ふしゅく) (fushuku)
* 巫術(ふじゅつ) (fujutsu): shamanism; witchcraft, sorcery
* 巫女(ふじょ) (fujo)
* 御(み)巫(かんこ) (mikanko)
* 御(み)巫(かんなぎ) (mikannagi)
* 御(み)巫(こうのこ) (mikōnoko)
* 巫女(みこ) (miko): a shrine maiden
* 野巫(やぶ) (yabu)
* 湯(ゆ)巫(みこ) (yumiko)
* 霊巫(れいふ) (reifu)

#### Usage notes

This is the only kanji added to the jinmeiyō kanji list on 7 January 2015 by the Japanese government; previously classified as hyōgaiji.

### Etymology 1

* Kanji in this term
* 巫
* かんなぎ Jinmeiyō
* kun'yomi
* Alternative spelling
* 覡
/kamunaɡi/ → /kaɴnaɡi/
From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of 神 (kamu, “god, spirit”) +‎ 和ぎ (nagi, “calming, calming down”), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 和ぐ (nagu, “to become calm, to become quiet”).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: [kã̠nːa̠ɡʲi]

#### Noun

巫(かんなぎ) • (kannagi)
* (archaic) a medium or shaman, usually female, who acts as a medium between humans and the spirits or gods, helping to communicate between the two and to calm any supernatural or spiritual upset
    Synonyms: 巫女 (miko), 神子 (kanko)

### Etymology 2

* Kanji in this term
* 巫
* こうなぎ Jinmeiyō
* kun'yomi
* Alternative spelling
* 覡
/kamunaɡi/ → /kaũnaɡi/ → /kaunaɡi/ → /kɔːnaɡi/ → /koːnaɡi/
Shift in pronunciation of the 神 (kamu) element, similar to the pattern seen in terms such as 神戸 (“Kōbe”).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ko̞ːna̠ɡʲi]

#### Noun

巫(こうなぎ) • (kōnagi)
* (archaic, possibly obsolete) a medium or shaman, usually female, who acts as a medium between humans and the spirits or gods, helping to communicate between the two and to calm any supernatural or spiritual upset

### Etymology 3

* Kanji in this term
* 巫
* みこ Jinmeiyō
* kun'yomi
For pronunciation and definitions of 巫 – see the following entry. :
| 【巫女みこ】 | [noun] An unmarried woman who serves at a Shintō shrine, helping to receive visitors and performing 神楽 (kagura) dances at ceremonies, among other responsibilities. A shrine maid. [noun] An unmarried woman who serves a deity as a medium to convey oracles. Alternative spellings 神子, 神巫, 覡 |
(This term, 巫, is an alternative spelling of the above term.) :

### References

* 1 2 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

## Korean
### Etymology

From Middle Chinese 巫 (MC mju). Recorded as Middle Korean 무 (mwu) (Yale: mwu) in Hunmong Jahoe (訓蒙字會 / 훈몽자회), 1527.

### Hanja

Wikisource 巫 (eumhun 무당 무 (mudang mu))
* hanja form of 무 (“shaman; something related to shamanism”)

#### Compounds

* 무녀 (巫女, munyeo)
* 무당 (巫堂, mudang)
* 무속 (巫俗, musok)

### References

* 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典.

## Vietnamese
### Han character

巫: Hán Việt readings: vu
* This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.