# 癸

| 癸 | U+7678, &#30328; CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-7678 |
| ← 癷 [U+7677] | CJK Unified Ideographs | 癹 → [U+7679] |

## Translingual
### Han character

癸 (Kangxi radical 105, 癶+4, 9 strokes, cangjie input 弓人一大 (NOMK), four-corner 1243$_0$, composition ⿱癶天)

#### Derived characters

* 𡎝 𡞳 揆 湀 猤 暌 楑 睽 䙆 聧 䠏 䤆 鍨 騤(骙)
* 鄈 戣 䳫 葵 闋(阕)

#### References

* Kangxi Dictionary: page 783, character 32
* Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 22660
* Dae Jaweon: page 1193, character 9
* Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2760, character 4
* Unihan data for U+7678

## Chinese
### Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 癸 :
| Shang | Shang | Western Zhou | Spring and Autumn | Warring States | Warring States | Warring States | Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) | Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) |
| Bronze inscriptions | Oracle bone script | Bronze inscriptions | Bronze inscriptions | Bronze inscriptions | Chu slip and silk script | Qin slip script | Shizhoupian script | Small seal script |
| | Old Chinese |
| 睽 | *kʰʷiːl |
| 湀 | *kʰʷiːl, *kʷilʔ, *ɡʷilʔ, *kʰʷiːd |
| 聧 | *kʰʷiː |
| 藈 | *kʰʷiːl |
| 癸 | *kʷilʔ |
| 葵 | *ɡʷil |
| 鄈 | *ɡʷil |
| 楑 | *ɡʷil, *ɡʷilʔ |
| 戣 | *ɡʷril |
| 鍨 | *ɡʷril |
| 騤 | *ɡʷril, *kʷiːd |
| 揆 | *ɡʷilʔ |
| 猤 | *ɡʷils |
| 闋 | *kʰʷiːd |
Pictogram (象形) - Multiple uncertain interpretations.
Possibly, this was a pictograph of a four handled plow, meant to be operated by 4 people at a time. This character shows how essential and commonplace collective farming was roughly 3000 years ago. Otherwise, it is composed of two halberds (戣 kuí).
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “Glyph origin from Chinese Wiktionary”)

### Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

### Pronunciation

* Mandarin
    (Standard)
       (Pinyin): guǐ (gui$^3$)
       (Zhuyin): ㄍㄨㄟˇ
    (Chengdu, Sichuanese Pinyin): gui$^4$
* Cantonese (Jyutping): gwai$^3$
* Hakka
    (Sixian, PFS): kui
    (Hailu, HRS): gui$^ˇ$
* Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): gui$^3$
* Southern Min
    (Hokkien, POJ): kúi
    (Teochew, Peng'im): gui$^3$
* Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): $^6$gue
* Mandarin
** (Standard Chinese)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: guǐ
*** Zhuyin: ㄍㄨㄟˇ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: guěi
*** Wade–Giles: kuei$^3$
*** Yale: gwěi
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: goei
*** Palladius: гуй (guj)
*** Sinological IPA : /ku̯eɪ̯²¹⁴/
** (Chengdu)
*** Sichuanese Pinyin: gui$^4$
*** Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: gui
*** Sinological IPA : /kuei²¹³/
* Cantonese
** (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
*** Jyutping: gwai$^3$
*** Yale: gwai
*** Cantonese Pinyin: gwai$^3$
*** Guangdong Romanization: guei$^3$
*** Sinological IPA : /kʷɐi̯³³/
* Hakka
** (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
*** Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: kui
*** Hakka Romanization System: gui
*** Hagfa Pinyim: gui$^4$
*** Sinological IPA: /ku̯i⁵⁵/
** (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
*** Hakka Romanization System: gui$^ˇ$
*** Sinological IPA: /kui¹¹/
* Puxian Min
** (Putian)
*** Pouseng Ping'ing: gui$^3$
*** Sinological IPA : /kui⁴⁵³/
** (Xianyou)
*** Pouseng Ping'ing: gui$^3$
*** Sinological IPA : /kui³³²/
* Southern Min
** (Hokkien)
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kúi
*** Tâi-lô: kuí
*** Phofsit Daibuun: kuie
*** IPA (Xiamen): /kui⁵³/
*** IPA (Quanzhou): /kui⁵⁵⁴/
*** IPA (Zhangzhou): /kui⁵³/
*** IPA (Taipei): /kui⁵³/
*** IPA (Kaohsiung): /kui⁴¹/
** (Teochew)
*** Peng'im: gui$^3$
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: kùi
*** Sinological IPA : /kui²¹³/
* Wu
** (Northern: Shanghai)
*** Wugniu: $^6$gue
*** MiniDict: gue$^去$
*** Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): $^3$gue
*** Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /ɡue²³/
* Middle Chinese: kjwijX
Rime :
| Character | 癸 |
| Reading # | 1/1 |
| Initial (聲) | 見 (28) |
| Final (韻) | 脂 (16) |
| Tone (調) | Rising (X) |
| Openness (開合) | Closed |
| Division (等) | III |
| Fanqie | 居誄切 |
| Baxter | kjwijX |
| Reconstructions ||
| Zhengzhang Shangfang | /kiuɪ$^X$/ |
| Pan Wuyun | /kʷi$^X$/ |
| Shao Rongfen | /kjuɪ$^X$/ |
| Edwin Pulleyblank | /kwi$^X$/ |
| Li Rong | /kui$^X$/ |
| Wang Li | /kwi$^X$/ |
| Bernhard Karlgren | /kwi$^X$/ |
| Expected Mandarin Reflex | guǐ |
| Expected Cantonese Reflex | gwai$^2$ |
* Old Chinese
    (Baxter–Sagart): /*kʷijʔ/
    (Zhengzhang): /*kʷilʔ/
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014) :
| Character | 癸 |
| Reading # | 1/1 |
| Modern Beijing (Pinyin) | guǐ |
| Middle Chinese | ‹ kjwij$^X$ › |
| Old Chinese | /*kʷijʔ/ |
| English | 10th heavenly stem |
| 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 | 癸 |
| Reading # | 1/1 |
| No. | 4644 |
| Phonetic component | 癸 |
| Rime group | 脂 |
| Rime subdivision | 1 |
| Corresponding MC rime | 癸 |
| Old Chinese | /*kʷilʔ/ |
| Notes | 戴侗雲戣初文；甲文象二工（金文或變二木）相交以度圜，本規初文 |

### Definitions

癸
* the tenth of the ten heavenly stems
* a surname

### Coordinate terms

* (Chinese heavenly stems) 天干 (tiāngān); 甲 (jiǎ), 乙 (yǐ), 丙 (bǐng), 丁 (dīng), 戊 (wù), 己 (jǐ), 庚 (gēng), 辛 (xīn), 壬 (rén), 癸 (guǐ)

### Compounds

* 呼庚呼癸
* 天癸
* 履癸
* 庚癸
* 庚癸之呼
* 癸字號 / 癸字号
* 癸期
* 癸水

### Descendants

* → Zhuang: gveiq

### References

* (Min Nan) “癸”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2025.

## Japanese
### Kanji

(Hyōgai kanji)
* something J
** tenth of the ten heavenly stems
** tenth rank

#### Readings

* Go-on: き (ki)
* Kan-on: き (ki)
* Kun: みずのと (mizunoto, 癸)

### Etymology 1

* Kanji in this term
* 癸
* き Hyōgai
* on'yomi
From Middle Chinese 癸 (kjwij$^X$).

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) き [kíꜜ] (Atamadaka – [1])
* IPA: [kʲi]
* Homophones: 木, 樹, 生, 杵, 柝, 黄, 己, 危, 忌, 奇, 季, 紀, 鬼, 基, 揆, 期, 簋

#### Proper noun

癸(き) • (Ki)
* the tenth of the ten heavenly stems;
    Hypernyms: 天干 (tenkan), 十干 (jikkan)
    Coordinate terms: 甲, 乙, 丙, 丁, 戊, 己, 庚, 辛, 壬, 癸
* the tenth rank; something J

### Etymology 2

* Kanji in this term
* 癸
* みずのと Hyōgai
* kun'yomi
水 (Mizu, “Water”, one of the Five Elements) +‎ の (no, attributive marker) +‎ 弟 (oto, “younger brother”)

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) みずのと [mìzúnóꜜtò] (Nakadaka – [3])
* IPA: [mʲizɨno̞to̞]

#### Proper noun

癸(みずのと) • (Mizunoto)
* the tenth of the ten heavenly stems
    Hypernyms: 天干 (tenkan), 十干 (jikkan)
    Coordinate terms: 甲, 乙, 丙, 丁, 戊, 己, 庚, 辛, 壬, 癸

## Korean
### Hanja

癸 (eumhun 천간 계 (cheon'gan gye))
* hanja form of 계 (“tenth heavenly stem”)

## Vietnamese
### Han character

癸: Hán Nôm readings: quý, quấy, quậy
* chữ Hán form of Quý (“tenth of the ten heavenly stems”).
    Hypernyms: 天干, 十干
    Coordinate terms: 甲, 乙, 丙, 丁, 戊, 己, 庚, 辛, 壬, 癸

#### Compounds

* 癸丑 (Qúy Sửu/Quý Sửu)
* 癸亥 (Qúy Hợi/Quý Hợi)
* 癸卯 (Qúy Mão/Quý Mão)
* 癸巳 (Qúy Tỵ/Quý Tỵ)
* 癸未 (Qúy Mùi/Quý Mùi)
* 癸酉 (Qúy Dậu/Quý Dậu)