美 (Měi)

(bound form) the Americas (abbr. for 美洲[Mei3 zhou1]); (bound form) USA

HSK 3.1 level 3
9 strokes

Etymology

Pictograph of a person with ornamental headwear resembling sheep horns.

Shuowen Jiezi

《說文》：“美，甘也。从羊，从大。”

Components

羊 (iconic) — Depicts ornamental headwear resembling sheep horns.
大 (iconic) — Used here as a pictograph of a person.