頭

See also: 头

頭	U+982D, 頭 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-982D

← 頬
[U+982C]

CJK Unified Ideographs

頮 →
[U+982E]

TranslingualEdit

Stroke order

Han characterEdit

頭 (radical 181 頁+7, 16 strokes, cangjie input 一廿一月金 (MTMBC), four-corner 1118₆, composition ⿰豆頁)

ReferencesEdit

KangXi: page 1404, character 20
Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 43490
Dae Jaweon: page 1921, character 13
Hanyu Da Zidian: volume 7, page 4372, character 5
Unihan data for U+982D

ChineseEdit

trad.		頭
simp.		头

Glyph originEdit

Characters in the same phonetic series (豆) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
	Old Chinese
侸	*toː
剅	toː, roː
郖	toː, doːs
鬪	*toːs
鋀	*tʰoː
頭	*doː
豆	*doːs
逗	doːs, dos
痘	*doːs
梪	*doːs
脰	*doːs
荳	*doːs
浢	*doːs
餖	*doːs
毭	*doːs
豎	*djoʔ
裋	*djoʔ
短	*toːnʔ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲, OC *doː): phonetic 豆 (OC *doːs) + semantic 頁.

EtymologyEdit

Replaced earlier 首 (OC *hljuʔ, *hljus, “head”).

PronunciationEdit

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): tóu (tou²)

(Zhuyin): ㄊㄡˊ

(Chengdu, SP): tou²

(Dungan, Cyrillic): ту (I)
Cantonese
(Guangzhou, Jyutping): tau⁴, tau^4-2

(Taishan, Wiktionary): heu³, heu^3*
Hakka (Sixian, PFS): thèu
Min Bei (KCR): tê
Min Dong (BUC): tàu
Min Nan
(Hokkien, POJ): thâu / thô͘ / thiô / thô

(Teochew, Peng'im): tao⁵
Wu (Wiktionary): deu (T3)

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Pinyin: tóu
  - Zhuyin: ㄊㄡˊ
  - Wade-Giles: t'ou²
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: tour
  - IPA ^(key): /tʰoʊ̯³⁵/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: tou²
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: tou
  - IPA ^(key): /tʰəu²¹/
- (Dungan)
  - Cyrillic: ту (I)
  - IPA ^(key): /tʰʊ²⁴/
  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
  - Jyutping: tau⁴, tau^4-2
  - Yale: tàuh, táu
  - Cantonese Pinyin: tau⁴, tau^4-2
  - Guangdong Romanization: teo⁴, teo²
  - IPA ^(key): /tʰɐu̯²¹/, /tʰɐu̯²¹⁻³⁵/

Note: tau4-2 - “leader”.

- (Taishanese, Taicheng)
  - Wiktionary: heu³, heu^3*
  - IPA ^(key): /heu²²/, /heu²²⁻²²⁵/

Note: heu3* - “leader”.

Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: thèu
  - Hakka Romanization System: teuˇ
  - Hagfa Pinyim: teu²
  - IPA: /tʰe̯u¹¹/
Min Bei
- (Jian'ou)
  - Kienning Colloquial Romanized: tê
  - IPA ^(key): /tʰe³³/
Min Dong
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: tàu
  - IPA ^(key): /tʰau⁵³/
Min Nan
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, mainstream Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: thâu
  - Tâi-lô: thâu
  - Phofsit Daibuun: taau
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /tʰaʊ²³/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /tʰaʊ¹³/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei): /tʰaʊ²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Yilan, Kinmen, Magong)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: thô͘
  - Tâi-lô: thôo
  - Phofsit Daibuun: too
  - IPA (Xiamen, Kinmen): /tʰɔ²⁴/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /tʰɔ¹³/
- (Hokkien: Quanzhou, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Lukang, Sanxia, Hsinchu)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: thiô
  - Tâi-lô: thiô
  - Phofsit Daibuun: tiooi
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /tʰiɤ²³/
  - IPA (Quanzhou, Taipei): /tʰio²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Taipei, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Lukang, Sanxia, Yilan, Taichung)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: thô
  - Tâi-lô: thô
  - Phofsit Daibuun: tooi
  - IPA (Taipei): /tʰo²⁴/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /tʰɤ²³/

Note:

thâu - vernacular;
thiô/thô͘ - literary;
thô - only used in 饅頭.

(Teochew)
- Peng'im: tao⁵
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: thâu
- IPA ^(key): /tʰau⁵⁵/

Wu
- (Shanghainese)
  - Wiktionary: deu (T3)
  - IPA ^(key): /d̻ɜ²³/

Dialectal data▼

Variety	Location	edit 頭
Mandarin	Beijing	/tʰou³⁵/
	Harbin	/tʰou²⁴/
	Tianjin	/tʰou⁴⁵/
	Jinan	/tʰou⁴²/
	Qingdao	/tʰou⁴²/
	Zhengzhou	/tʰou⁴²/
	Xi'an	/tʰou²⁴/
	Xining	/tʰɯ²⁴/
	Yinchuan	/tʰəu⁵³/
	Lanzhou	/tʰou⁵³/
	Ürümqi	/tʰɤu⁵¹/
	Wuhan	/tʰəu²¹³/
	Chengdu	/tʰəu³¹/
	Guiyang	/tʰəu²¹/
	Kunming	/tʰəu³¹/
	Nanjing	/tʰəɯ²⁴/
	Hefei	/tʰɯ⁵⁵/
Jin	Taiyuan	/tʰəu¹¹/
	Pingyao	/təu¹³/ /tʰəu¹³/
	Hohhot	/tʰəu³¹/
Wu	Shanghai	/dɤ²³/
	Suzhou	/dɤ¹³/
	Hangzhou	/dei²¹³/
	Wenzhou	/dɤu³¹/
Hui	Shexian	/tʰiu⁴⁴/
Hui	Tunxi	/tʰiu⁴⁴/
Xiang	Changsha	/təu¹³/
Xiang	Xiangtan	/dəɯ¹²/
Gan	Nanchang	/tʰɛu²⁴/
Hakka	Meixian	/tʰeu¹¹/
Hakka	Taoyuan	/tʰeu¹¹/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/tʰɐu²¹/
	Nanning	/tʰɐu²¹/
	Hong Kong	/tʰɐu²¹/
Min	Xiamen (Min Nan)	/tʰɔ³⁵/ /tʰau³⁵/
	Fuzhou (Min Dong)	/tʰau⁵³/
	Jian'ou (Min Bei)	/tʰe³³/
	Shantou (Min Nan)	/tʰau⁵⁵/
	Haikou (Min Nan)	/hau³¹/

Middle Chinese: /dəu/▼

Rime
Character	頭
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	定 (7)
Final (韻)	侯 (137)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	I
Fanqie	度侯切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/dəu/
Pan Wuyun	/dəu/
Shao Rongfen	/dəu/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/dəw/
Li Rong	/du/
Wang Li	/dəu/
Bernard Karlgren	/dʱə̯u/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	tóu

Old Chinese▼
(Baxter-Sagart): /*[m-t]ˤo/

(Zhengzhang): /*doː/

Baxter-Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	頭
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	tóu
Middle Chinese	‹ duw ›
Old Chinese	/*[m-t]ˤo/
English	head
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	頭
Reading #	1/1
No.	2465
Phonetic component	豆
Rime group	侯
Rime subdivision	0
Corresponding MC rime	頭
Old Chinese	/*doː/

DefinitionsEdit

頭

(anatomy) head (Classifier: 個／个 m c)

我頭不再痛了。 / 我头不再痛了。 ― Wǒ tóu bùzài tòng le. ― My head doesn't hurt any more.
- 我又要叫你和女人彼此為仇；你的後裔和女人的後裔也彼此為仇。女人的後裔要傷你的頭；你要傷他的腳跟。 [MSC, trad.]
  我又要叫你和女人彼此为仇；你的后裔和女人的后裔也彼此为仇。女人的后裔要伤你的头；你要伤他的脚跟。 [MSC, simp.]
  From: 新標點和合本 (Chinese Union Version with New Punctuation), 創世記 (Genesis) 3:15
  
  Wǒ yòu yào jiào nǐ hé nǚrén bǐcǐ wéi chóu; nǐ de hòuyì hé nǚrén de hòuyì yě bǐcǐ wéi chóu. Nǚrén de hòuyì yào shāng nǐ de tóu; nǐ yào shāng tā de jiǎogēn. [Pinyin]
  
  And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
hair

洗頭 / 洗头 ― xǐtóu ― to wash one's hair
top; tip; end
chief; boss; leader
remnant; end
Classifier for livestock. ⇒ all nouns using this classifier

我有兩頭豬。 / 我有两头猪。 ― Wǒ yǒu liǎng tóu zhū. ― I have two pigs.
first; leading
Diminutive suffix.

SynonymsEdit

Dialectal synonyms of 頭 (“head”) [map]
Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		首、元、頭
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		頭、頭部、頭顱、頭腦
Mandarin	Beijing	腦袋、腦袋瓜兒、腦袋瓜子、腦殼
	Taiwan	頭、腦袋
	Tianjin	腦袋、腦瓜子、腦袋瓜子、腦袋瓜兒
	Harbin	頭、腦殼兒、腦殼子、腦子、腦瓜兒、腦瓜子、腦袋、腦袋瓜兒、腦袋瓜子
	Shenyang	腦袋
	Hailar	腦袋
	Ulan Hot	腦袋、腦袋瓜兒
	Tongliao	腦袋
	Chifeng	頭
	Bayanhot	頭、腦袋
	Jinan	頭、腦袋、腦袋瓜子、腦瓜子、腦瓜兒
	Muping	頭、腦袋瓜子 derogatory
	Luoyang	頭、低腦
	Jiedian	等腦
	Xi'an	𦠿、頭
	Xining	頭
	Xuzhou	頭、棗木 dated, humorous
	Yinchuan	頭
	Lanzhou	頭、頭蛋骨、得勒 derogatory
	Ürümqi	頭
	Wuhan	頭、腦殼
	Chengdu	腦殼
	Guiyang	腦殼
	Guilin	頭、腦殼
	Liuzhou	頭、頭殼、腦殼
	Kunming	頭、腦殼
	Yangzhou	頭
	Nanjing	頭
	Hefei	頭
Cantonese	Guangzhou	頭、頭殼
	Hong Kong	頭、頭殼
	Shunde	頭
	Zhongshan	頭
	Dongguan	腦殼、頭
	Hong Kong (Weitou)	頭殼
	Taishan	頭、頭殼
	Doumen	頭
	Kaiping	頭
	Shaoguan	頭、頭殼
	Yunfu	頭、頭殼
	Yangjiang	頭殼
	Xinyi	頭、頭殼
	Lianjiang	頭、頭殼
	Nanning	頭
	Wuzhou	頭
	Yulin	頭
	Hepu	頭殼
	Kuala Lumpur	頭
Gan	Nanchang	頭、腦蓋
	Lichuan	頭、腦
	Pingxiang	腦殼
Hakka	Meixian	頭那
	Xingning	頭那
	Huidong	頭那
	Qujiang	頭那
	Xiaosanjiang	頭那
	Luchuan	頭
	Changting	頭那
	Pingyu	頭那
	Wuping	頭那
	Liancheng	頭那
	Ninghua	腦殼
	Yudu	頭、腦蓋、腦殼
	Ruijin	腦蓋、頭那殼
	Shicheng	腦蓋、腦殼
	Shangyou	腦蓋
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	頭那
	Liudui (S. Sixian)	頭那
	Hsinchu (Hailu)	頭那
	Dongshi (Dabu)	頭那
	Zhuolan (Raoping)	頭那
	Yunlin (Zhao'an)	頭那
	Hong Kong	頭那
	Sabah	頭那
	Senai	頭那
	Singkawang	頭那
Huizhou	Jixi	頭、腦殼
Jin	Taiyuan	得腦、頭、乾骷髏 derogatory、骷髏 derogatory
	Xinzhou	得腦
	Baochang	頭
	Jining	腦袋
	Hohhot	腦袋
	Baotou	腦袋
	Dongsheng	頭
	Linhe	腦袋
	Haibowan	腦袋
Min Bei	Jian'ou	頭
Min Dong	Fuzhou	頭、頭腦、頭首
	Fuqing	頭
	Matsu	頭、頭首
Min Nan	Xiamen	頭、頭殼
	Quanzhou	頭、頭殼
	Zhangzhou	頭、頭殼
	Taipei	頭、頭殼
	Kaohsiung	頭、頭殼
	Tainan	頭、頭殼
	Taichung	頭殼
	Hsinchu	頭殼
	Lukang	頭、頭殼
	Sanxia	頭、頭殼
	Yilan	頭、頭殼
	Kinmen	頭殼
	Magong	頭殼
	Penang	頭、頭殼
	Singapore	頭殼
	Philippines (Manila)	頭、頭殼
	Pingnan	頭
	Chaozhou	頭殼
	Shantou	頭殼
	Haifeng	頭、頭殼、頭殼顱
	Johor Bahru	頭
	Haikou	頭顱、頭殼
	Leizhou	頭、頭顱、殼升
Puxian Min	Putian	頭
Pinghua	Nanning	頭、頭殼
Pinghua	Guilin	頭
Wu	Shanghai	頭、頭骷顱、骷顱頭 often derogatory、骷郎頭 often derogatory
	Suzhou	頭、骷郎頭、六斤四兩
	Hangzhou	頭、腦頭瓜
	Wenzhou	頭、六斤四 secret
	Chongming	頭爿
	Danyang	頭、腦袋瓜、頭骷郎
	Jinhua	頭、葫粒頭 humorous
	Ningbo	骷顱頭、骷郎頭、頭、骷顱頭甏 derogatory、骷顱頭瓶 derogatory、六斤四兩 humorous
Xiang	Changsha	腦殼
	Shuangfeng	腦殼
	Loudi	腦殼
	Quanzhou	腦殼

CompoundsEdit

Derived terms from 頭

JapaneseEdit

KanjiEdit

ReadingsEdit

Goon: ず (zu, Jōyō)^{←づ (du, historical)}
Kan’on: とう (tō, Jōyō)
Tōon: じゅう (jū)^{←ぢゆう (dyū, historical)}
Kan’yōon: と (to, Jōyō, uncommon)
Kun: あたま (atama, 頭, Jōyō); かしら (kashira, 頭); かぶり (kaburi, 頭); こうべ (kōbe, 頭)^{←かうべ (kaube, historical)}
Nanori: かぶ (kabu); かぶし (kabushi); かみ (kami); ちゃん (chan); つぶり (tsuburi); つむ (tsumu); つむり (tsumuri); づ (zu); どたま (dotama)

CompoundsEdit

Compounds

頭 (とう)蓋 (がい)骨 (こつ) (tōgaikotsu, “skull, cranium”)
頭 (とう)角 (かく) (tōkaku, “distinguishing oneself”)
頭 (ず)脳 (のう) (zunō, “brain (intellect)”)
若 (わか)頭 (がしら) (wakagashira, “underboss”)
頭 (とう)領 (りょう) (tōryō, “head, chief”)
饅 (まん)頭 (じゅう) (manjū, “manjū”, a type of bun typically with bean paste filling)
頭 (ふ)垢 (け) (fuke, “dandruff”)
頭 (ず)痛 (つう) (zutsū, “headache”)

Etymology 1Edit

Japanese Wikipedia has an article on:

頭

Wikipedia ^ja

Kanji in this term
頭
あたま Grade: 2
kun’yomi

From Old Japanese of unknown derivation. Theories include:

Compound of 天玉 (a tama, literally “heaven, sky + ball”). This is problematic phonetically, as 天 appears historically as ama or ame, not as just a
Compound of 当て間 (ate ma, literally “putting something in contact + space, gap”), referring to the head as a moxibustion point. This is also problematic phonetically, as the shift from ate to ata necessitates a change in meaning of the underlying verb. This is also problematic semantically, as the 間 (ma) term refers more specifically to a gap or space.
Compound of 貴間 (ate ma, literally “noble + space”), referring to the most important part of the body. However, the use of 間 (ma) in this way is again problematic. Moreover, 貴 (ate, “noble”) appears in The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter dating to the 900s CE, while 頭 (atama) with a sense of fontanelle appears in the Wamyō Ruijushō dated 938 CE, leaving insufficient time for either the semantic or phonetic drift required.^[1]^[2]

Historically, this term first appears with a sense of fontanelle, in reference to the soft place on the top of an infant's head where the bones of the skull have not yet fused. As such, a more likely derivation might be as a compound of 当た (ata, “not quite touching, not quite in contact”, possibly a fossilized 未然形 (mizenkei, “incomplete form”) of classical verb 当つ (atsu), root of modern 当たる (ataru, “to touch, to come into contact”)) +‎ 間 (ma, “space, gap, opening”).

PronunciationEdit

Kun’yomi
- (Tokyo) あたま [àtámáꜜ] (Odaka – [3])^[2]^[3]
- (Tokyo) あたま [àtáꜜmà] (Nakadaka – [2])^[2]^[3]
- IPA^(key): [a̠ta̠ma̠]

Wiktionary β

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TranslingualEdit