京jīng

京

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Simplified · Today

简体

Simplified Chinese

Simplified Chinese (簡體). 京 (jīng, "capital city") remains unchanged from traditional form — an ancient pictograph of a towering watchtower with a peaked roof, its elevated shape perfectly capturing the notion of a raised, important place. As a component it appears in 景 (landscape), 凉 (cool) and 惊 (startle), among others.

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Shuowen

京 depicts a tall, raised structure with a pointed roof—the image of a watchtower or elevated granary built on high ground. The character captures both the height of the platform and the peak of the roof in simple strokes. This pictographic representation explains why 京 came to mean "capital" or "city" (a place of elevated importance) and serves as a phonetic component in many related characters.

Pinyin

jīng· HSK 1

京jīng

Character evolution

Shuowen

Pinyin