常 (Cháng)

surname Chang

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 巾 represents the meaning and 尚 represents the sound. Based on the original meaning, "lower garment", now written as 裳. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

Shuowen Jiezi

《說文》:“常,下帬也。从巾,尚聲。裳,常或从衣。”

Original meaning

lower garment

Components