首

首	U+9996, 首 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-9996

⾸	U+2FB8, ⾸ KANGXI RADICAL HEAD

← ⾷
[U+2FB7]

Kangxi Radicals

⾹ →
[U+2FB9]

Translingual

Stroke order

Stroke order

Han character

See images of
Radical 185 首

首 (Kangxi radical 185, 首+0, 9 strokes, cangjie input 廿竹月山 (THBU), four-corner 8060₁, composition ⿱丷𦣻 or ⿱䒑自)

Kangxi radical #185, ⾸.

Derived characters

Appendix:Chinese radical/首
𠃺, 𫮐, 𡞝, 𭛼, 𢰢, 渞, 𤠁, 道, 𪳂, 𣮹, 𫤞, 𪼼, 艏, 𫋎, 𨍣, 𨲛, 𮫤, 𮬅, 𠡼, 𬱯, 𩯢, 𪬐, 𩠮, 𩠰, 𭐱, 衜, 𭩍, 𬞪

Chinese

simp. and trad.		首
alternative forms		𩠐𦣻

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 首
Shang	Western Zhou	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

Characters in the same phonetic series (首) (Zhengzhang, 2003)

	Old Chinese
道	*l'uːʔ
導	*duːs
首	hljuʔ, hljus

Simplified from 𩠐 (巛 → 丷). Originally pictographic (象形) of an animal with a long mouth and horns. In the oracle bone script, it appeared with or without hair (巛), but 𩠐, the form with hair, was the form that was perpetuated.

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *k-lu; cognate with Mizo lu (“head”). This word has also been compared with Proto-Austronesian *quluh (“head”) (Malay hulu) and Proto-Tai *klawꟲ ~ krawꟲ (“head; hair knot”) (Thai เกล้า (glâao, “hair; head”)), and was used by Sagart to support his Sino-Austronesian hypothesis. Compare 道 (OC *l'uːʔ, “path, road”) (with the same phonetic component) and its relationship with Proto-Hmong-Mien *kləuX (“road, way”).

This word was replaced by 頭 (OC *doː, “head”) by the Warring States period, possibly due to early homophony with 手 (OC *hnjɯwʔ, “hand”).

Pronunciation 1

Mandarin
(Pinyin): shǒu (shou³)

(Zhuyin): ㄕㄡˇ
Cantonese (Jyutping): sau²
Hakka
(Sixian, PFS): sú

(Meixian, Guangdong): su³
Eastern Min (BUC): siū
Southern Min
(Hokkien, POJ): siú / chhiú

(Teochew, Peng'im): siu²
Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ⁵seu

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: shǒu
  - Zhuyin: ㄕㄡˇ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: shǒu
  - Wade–Giles: shou³
  - Yale: shǒu
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shoou
  - Palladius: шоу (šou)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: sau²
  - Yale: sáu
  - Cantonese Pinyin: sau²
  - Guangdong Romanization: seo²
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɐu̯³⁵/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: sú
  - Hakka Romanization System: su^ˋ
  - Hagfa Pinyim: su³
  - Sinological IPA: /su³¹/
- (Meixian)
  - Guangdong: su³
  - Sinological IPA: /su³¹/
Eastern Min
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: siū
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /sieu³³/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: siú / chhiú
  - Tâi-lô: siú / tshiú
  - Phofsit Daibuun: siuo, chiuo
  - IPA (Xiamen): /siu⁵³/, /t͡sʰiu⁵³/
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /siu⁵⁵⁴/, /t͡sʰiu⁵⁵⁴/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /siu⁵³/, /t͡sʰiu⁵³/
  - IPA (Taipei): /siu⁵³/, /t͡sʰiu⁵³/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /siu⁴¹/, /t͡sʰiu⁴¹/

Note:

siú - literary;
chhiú - vernacular.

(Teochew)
- Peng'im: siu²
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: siú
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /siu⁵²/

Wu
- (Northern: Shanghai)
  - Wugniu: ⁵seu
  - MiniDict: seu^去
  - Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ²seu
  - Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /sɤ³⁴/

Middle Chinese: syuwX

Rime
Character	首
Reading #	1/2
Initial (聲)	書 (26)
Final (韻)	尤 (136)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	書九切
Baxter	syuwX
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ɕɨu^X/
Pan Wuyun	/ɕiu^X/
Shao Rongfen	/ɕiəu^X/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ɕuw^X/
Li Rong	/ɕiu^X/
Wang Li	/ɕĭəu^X/
Bernhard Karlgren	/ɕi̯ə̯u^X/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	shǒu
Expected Cantonese Reflex	sau²

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*l̥uʔ/

(Zhengzhang): /*hljuʔ/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	首
Reading #	1/2
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	shǒu
Middle Chinese	‹ syuw^X ›
Old Chinese	/*l̥uʔ/
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	首
Reading #	1/2
No.	11671
Phonetic component	首
Rime group	幽
Rime subdivision	1
Corresponding MC rime	首
Old Chinese	/*hljuʔ/

Definitions

首

(archaic, anatomy) head
Synonym: 頭 / 头
- 愛而不見，搔首踟躕。 [Pre-Classical Chinese, trad.]
  爱而不见，搔首踟蹰。 [Pre-Classical Chinese, simp.]
  From: The Classic of Poetry, c. 11^th – 7^th centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version
  Ài ér bù jiàn, sāo shǒu chíchú. [Pinyin]
  Loving and not seeing her, I scratch my head, and am in perplexity.
chief; leader
start; beginning
first; best; highest
prime; prior; primary
side; direction
Classifier for songs and poems. ⇒ all nouns using this classifier

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 首 (“(classifier for songs)”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		首, 支
Northeastern Mandarin	Taiwan	首
Northeastern Mandarin	Singapore	首
Southwestern Mandarin	Guilin	首
Cantonese	Guangzhou	支, 隻
	Hong Kong	首, 隻, 支
	Hong Kong (Kam Tin; Weitou)	隻, 支
	Macau	支
	Guangzhou (Panyu)	隻
	Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu)	隻
	Guangzhou (Conghua)	隻
	Guangzhou (Zengcheng)	支
	Foshan	支
	Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai)	隻
	Foshan (Shunde)	支
	Foshan (Sanshui)	支
	Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming)	支
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	支
	Zhuhai (Qianshan, Xiangzhou)	支
	Zhuhai (Shangheng, Doumen; Tanka)	支
	Zhuhai (Doumen)	支
	Jiangmen (Baisha)	支
	Jiangmen (Xinhui)	支
	Taishan	條
	Kaiping (Chikan)	條
	Enping (Niujiang)	條
	Heshan (Yayao)	隻
	Dongguan	支
	Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an)	支
Hakka	Huizhou (Huicheng; Bendihua)	支
	Dongguan (Qingxi)	條
	Shenzhen (Shatoujiao)	隻
	Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui)	條
	Guangzhou (Lütian, Conghua)	隻
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	條
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	條
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	條
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	條
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	條
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	條
Southern Min	Jinjiang	塊
	Tainan	條, 首
	Singapore (Hokkien)	條
	Manila (Hokkien)	塊
	Shantou	條
	Shantou (Chenghai)	條
	Jieyang	條
Zhongshan Min	Zhongshan (Longdu, Shaxi)	首, 條
Wu	Shanghai	隻
Xiang	Changsha	隻

Dialectal synonyms of 頭 (“head”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		首, 元, 頭, 元首
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		頭, 頭部, 頭顱, 頭腦
Northeastern Mandarin	Beijing	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦袋瓜子, 腦殼兒, 腦殼, 腦瓜兒, 腦瓜子, 老屋子
	Taiwan	頭, 腦袋
	Chengde	頭, 腦袋瓜兒
	Ulanhot	腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Tongliao	腦袋
	Chifeng	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Hulunbuir (Hailar)	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Heihe	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦瓜兒, 腦瓜子
	Qiqihar	頭, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦瓜兒
	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
	Jiamusi	頭, 腦瓜兒, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Baicheng	頭, 腦瓜兒, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Changchun	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Tonghua	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Shenyang	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Jinzhou	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Singapore	頭
	Olginsky (Mikhaylovka)	腦袋
Jilu Mandarin	Tianjin	頭, 腦袋, 腦瓜子, 腦瓜兒, 腦袋瓜子, 腦袋瓜兒
	Tangshan	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦瓜兒
	Cangzhou	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦殼兒
	Baoding	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Shijiazhuang	頭, 腦袋
	Lijin	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Jinan	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子, 腦瓜子, 腦瓜兒
Jiaoliao Mandarin	Dalian	頭
	Dandong	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Yantai	頭
	Yantai (Muping)	頭, 腦袋瓜子 derogatory
	Qingdao	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Zhucheng	頭
Central Plains Mandarin	Luoyang	頭, 低腦
	Lingbao	頭
	Jining	頭
	Wanrong	得腦
	Linfen	得腦
	Shangqiu	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦瓜兒
	Yuanyang	頭, 腦袋, 腦瓜兒
	Zhengzhou	頭, 腦袋
	Kaifeng	腦袋
	Xinyang	頭
	Baihe	頭, 腦袋, 腦瓜兒
	Xi'an	𦠿, 頭, 腦袋, 脊囊
	Baoji	頭, 多腦
	Tianshui	頭, 多腦
	Xining	頭, 腦袋, 朵落
	Xuzhou	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子, 棗木 dated, humorous
	Fuyang	頭, 腦袋
Lanyin Mandarin	Yinchuan	頭
	Bayanhot	頭, 腦袋
	Lanzhou	頭, 頭蛋骨, 得勒 derogatory
	Dunhuang	頭, 腦瓜子, 腦勺, 腦勺殼子
	Hami	頭, 腦袋
	Ürümqi	頭, 腦瓜子
	Ürümqi (Xigou)	頭
	Ürümqi (Changshanzi)	頭
Southwestern Mandarin	Chengdu	腦殼
	Nanchong	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Dazhou	腦殼
	Hanyuan	腦殼
	Xichang	腦殼, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒
	Zigong	頭, 腦殼
	Chongqing	腦殼, 沙罐兒
	Wuhan	頭, 腦殼, 腦瓜子
	Yichang	腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Xiangyang	頭, 腦袋, 腦殼
	Tianmen	頭, 腦袋, 腦殼
	Guiyang	腦殼
	Zunyi	腦袋, 腦殼兒
	Bijie	腦殼
	Liping	腦袋, 腦殼
	Zhaotong	腦殼
	Dali	腦殼
	Kunming	頭, 腦殼, 腦袋
	Mengzi	頭, 腦殼
	Guilin	頭, 腦殼
	Liuzhou	頭, 頭殼, 腦殼
	Tianlin (Langping)	腦殼
	Jishou	頭, 腦殼
	Changde	腦殼
	Hanzhong	頭, 腦袋, 腦殼
	Mae Salong (Lancang)	頭, 腦袋
	Mae Sai (Tengchong)	頭, 腦袋
Jianghuai Mandarin	Nanjing	頭, 頭兒
	Yangzhou	頭
	Lianyungang	頭
	Lianshui	頭, 腦袋瓜子
	Xinghua	頭
	Nantong	頭
	Anqing	頭, 腦袋瓜
	Wuhu	頭
	Hefei	頭
	Hong'an	頭, 腦殼, 腦袋
Cantonese	Guangzhou	頭, 頭殼
	Hong Kong	頭, 頭殼
	Hong Kong (San Tin; Weitou)	頭殼
	Hong Kong (Kam Tin; Weitou)	頭殼
	Hong Kong (Ting Kok)	頭
	Hong Kong (Tung Ping Chau)	頭
	Macau	頭
	Guangzhou (Panyu)	頭, 頭殼
	Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu)	頭
	Guangzhou (Conghua)	頭
	Guangzhou (Zengcheng)	頭, 頭殼
	Foshan	頭, 頭殼
	Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai)	頭
	Foshan (Shunde)	頭
	Foshan (Sanshui)	頭殼
	Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming)	頭
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	頭
	Zhuhai (Qianshan, Xiangzhou)	頭
	Zhuhai (Shangheng, Doumen; Tanka)	頭
	Zhuhai (Doumen)	頭, 頭殼
	Jiangmen (Baisha)	頭
	Jiangmen (Xinhui)	頭
	Taishan	頭
	Kaiping (Chikan)	頭
	Enping (Niujiang)	頭
	Heshan (Yayao)	頭
	Dongguan	腦殼, 頭
	Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an)	頭殼
	Shenzhen (Dapeng)	頭
	Qingyuan	頭
	Fogang	頭
	Yingde (Hanguang)	頭殼
	Yangshan	頭
	Lianshan (Butian)	頭
	Lianzhou (Qingshui; Sihui)	頭
	Shaoguan	頭, 頭殼
	Shaoguan (Qujiang)	頭
	Renhua	頭乸殼
	Lechang	頭
	Zhaoqing (Gaoyao)	頭
	Sihui	頭
	Guangning	頭
	Deqing	頭
	Huaiji	頭, 羅殼
	Fengkai (Nanfeng)	頭
	Yunfu	頭, 頭殼
	Xinxing	頭, 頭殼
	Luoding	頭
	Yunan (Pingtai)	頭
	Yangjiang	頭殼
	Xinyi	頭, 頭殼
	Maoming (Xinpo)	頭, 頭殼
	Lianjiang	頭, 頭殼
	Wuchuan (Wuyang)	頭
	Nanning	頭, 頭殼
	Wuzhou	頭
	Yulin	頭, 頭殼
	Hepu (Lianzhou)	頭殼
	Hepu (Shatian)	頭骨
	Guiping	頭
	Mengshan (Xihe)	頭
	Guigang (Nanjiang)	頭
	Baise	頭
	Bobai	頭
Lingshan	頭
Pubei	頭
Qinzhou	頭
Beihai	頭
Beihai (Nankang)	頭殼
Beihai (Yingpan)	頭殼
Beihai (Qiaogang - Cô Tô)	頭
Beihai (Qiaogang - Cát Bà)	頭
Ningming	頭
Hengzhou	頭
Hezhou (Pumen, Babu)	頭
Fangchenggang (Fangcheng)	頭
Sanya (Yanglan; Maihua)	頭
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu)	頭
Singapore (Guangfu)	頭
Ho Chi Minh City (Guangfu)	頭
Móng Cái	頭
Gan	Nanchang	頭, 腦蓋
	Lichuan	頭, 腦
	Pingxiang	腦殼
Hakka	Meixian	頭那
	Xingning	頭那
	Dabu (Xihe)	頭那
	Huizhou (Huicheng; Bendihua)	頭, 頭那, 頭殼
	Huizhou (Shuikou; Bendihua)	頭那, 頭
	Huizhou (Hengli; Bendihua)	頭那, 頭
	Huiyang	頭那
	Huidong (Pingshan; Bendihua)	頭那, 頭
	Huidong (Daling)	頭那
	Dongguan (Qingxi)	頭那
	Longmen (Pingling; Bendihua)	頭那
	Longmen (Luxi; Bendihua)	頭那, 頭
	Boluo (Bendihua)	頭, 那殼
	Shenzhen (Shatoujiao)	頭那
	Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui)	頭
	Wuhua (Shuizhai)	頭那
	Wuhua (Huacheng)	頭那, 頭
	Wuhua (Changbu)	頭那
	Wuhua (Mianyang)	頭那
	Wuhua (Meilin)	頭那
	Heyuan (Bendihua)	頭, 頭那
	Zijin (Guzhu; Bendihua)	頭那
	Longchuan (Tuocheng; Bendihua)	頭, 頭那
	Longchuan (Sidu; Bendihua)	頭那
	Heping (Linzhai; Bendihua)	頭那
	Lianping (Zhongxin; Bendihua)	頭那
	Lianping (Longjie; Bendihua)	頭, 頭那
	Wengyuan	頭那
	Shaoguan (Qujiang)	頭那
	Xinfeng (Matou; Bendihua)	頭, 頭那
	Xinfeng (Daxi; Bendihua)	頭那, 頭
	Lianshan (Xiaosanjiang)	頭那
	Liannan	頭
	Guangzhou (Lütian, Conghua)	頭
	Jiexi	頭那
	Luhe	頭那
	Zhao'an (Xiuzhuan)	頭那
	Changting	頭那
	Wuping	頭那
	Wuping (Yanqian)	頭那
	Wuping (Pingyu)	頭那
	Liancheng	頭那
	Ninghua	腦殼
	Yudu	頭, 腦蓋, 腦殼
	Ningdu	腦蓋
	Ruijin	腦蓋, 頭那殼
	Shicheng	腦蓋, 腦殼
	Shangyou (Shexi)	腦蓋
	Tonggu (Sandu)	頭那
	Ganzhou (Panlong)	腦蓋
	Dayu	腦骨窠
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	頭那
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	頭那
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	頭那
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	頭那
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	頭那
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	頭那
	Hong Kong	頭那
	Yangxi (Tangkou)	頭
	Yangchun (Sanjia)	頭殼
	Xinyi (Sihe)	頭
	Xinyi (Qianpai)	頭
	Gaozhou (Xindong)	頭, 頭殼
	Maoming (Shalang, Dianbai)	頭殼
Huazhou (Xin'an)	頭殼
Lianjiang (Shijiao)	頭殼
Lianjiang (Qingping)	頭殼
Mengshan (Xihe)	頭腦
Luchuan	頭殼
Luchuan (Daqiao)	頭
Bobai (Shahe)	頭, 頭殼
Beiliu (Tang'an)	頭那
Mashan (Pianlian)	頭那
Sabah (Longchuan)	頭那
Kuala Lumpur (Dabu)	頭那
Senai (Huiyang)	頭那
Sungai Tapang, Batu Kawa (Hepo)	頭
Singkawang	頭那
Singapore (Meixian)	頭那
Singapore (Dabu)	頭那
Huizhou	Jixi	頭, 腦殼
Huizhou	Shexian	頭, 頭腦殼
Jin	Taiyuan	得腦, 頭, 腦袋, 乾骷髏 derogatory, 骷髏 derogatory
	Pingyao	得腦
	Yangyuan	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦瓜兒
	Datong	頭, 腦袋
	Xinzhou	得腦, 頭, 腦袋
	Lüliang (Lishi)	腦袋, 腦袋瓜兒, 腦
	Changzhi	頭, 腦袋, 得腦
	Taibus (Baochang)	頭
	Linhe	頭, 腦袋, 得腦
	Jining	頭, 腦袋
	Hohhot	頭, 腦袋, 得腦
	Baotou	腦袋
	Dongsheng	頭
	Haibowan	腦袋
	Erenhot	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Pingshan	頭, 腦袋瓜兒
	Zhangjiakou	頭, 腦袋
	Handan	頭, 腦袋, 腦袋瓜子
	Linzhou	頭, 得腦哦
	Suide	頭, 腦
Northern Min	Jian'ou	頭
	Jian'ou (Dikou)	頭
	Songxi	頭
	Zhenghe (Zhenqian)	頭
	Jianyang	頭
	Wuyishan	腦殼
	Pucheng (Shibei)	頭
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	頭, 頭腦, 頭首
	Lianjiang	頭
	Fuqing	頭
	Gutian	頭
	Pingnan	頭
	Fu'an	頭
	Ningde	頭子
	Xiapu	頭
	Shouning	頭
	Zhouning	頭
	Fuding	頭
	Matsu	頭, 頭首
Southern Min	Xiamen	頭, 頭殼
	Xiamen (Tong'an)	頭殼
	Quanzhou	頭, 頭殼
	Jinjiang	頭殼
	Hui'an	頭殼
	Anxi	頭殼
	Yongchun	頭殼
	Dehua	頭殼
	Zhangzhou	頭, 頭殼
	Zhangzhou (Longhai)	頭殼
	Hua'an	頭殼
	Pinghe	頭殼
	Zhangpu	頭殼
	Yunxiao	頭碗
	Zhao'an	頭殼
	Dongshan	頭
	Taipei	頭, 頭殼
	Taipei (Wanhua)	頭殼
	New Taipei (Sanxia)	頭, 頭殼
	Kaohsiung	頭, 頭殼
	Yilan	頭, 頭殼
	Changhua (Lukang)	頭, 頭殼
	Taichung	頭殼
	Taichung (Wuqi)	頭殼
	Tainan	頭, 頭殼
	Taitung	頭殼
	Hsinchu	頭殼
	Kinmen	頭殼
	Penghu (Magong)	頭殼
	Penang (Hokkien)	頭, 頭殼
	Singapore (Hokkien)	頭, 頭殼
	Manila (Hokkien)	頭, 頭殼
	Longyan	頭殼
	Datian	頭殼
	Pingnan (Shangdu)	頭
	Chaozhou	頭殼
	Shantou	頭殼, 頭, 腦殼
	Shantou (Chenghai)	頭殼
	Shantou (Chaoyang)	頭, 頭殼
	Jieyang	頭, 頭殼
	Lufeng	頭殼
	Haifeng	頭, 頭殼, 頭殼顱
	Bangkok (Teochew)	頭
	Johor Bahru (Teochew)	頭
	Singapore (Teochew)	頭
	Batam (Teochew)	頭
	Leizhou	頭, 頭顱, 殼升
	Wenchang	頭
	Haikou	頭顱, 頭殼
	Qionghai	頭, 頭顱
Puxian Min	Putian	頭, 頭末
	Putian (Donghai, Chengxiang)	頭
	Putian (Jiangkou, Hanjiang)	頭末
	Putian (Nanri, Xiuyu)	頭
	Xianyou	頭
	Xianyou (Fengting)	頭
	Xianyou (Youyang)	頭, 頭囝
	Fuding (Aoyao)	頭殼
Central Min	Yong'an	頭殼, 頭
	Sanming (Sanyuan)	頭殼
	Sanming (Shaxian)	頭殼
Zhongshan Min	Zhongshan (Longdu, Shaxi)	頭殼
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Tingzi)	頭, 頭殼
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Xinxu)	頭
Northern Pinghua	Guilin (Dahe)	頭
Wu	Shanghai	頭, 腦袋, 頭骷顱, 骷顱頭 often derogatory, 骷郎頭 often derogatory
	Shanghai (Chongming)	頭爿
	Suzhou	頭, 骷郎頭, 六斤四兩
	Danyang	頭, 腦袋瓜, 頭骷郎
	Hangzhou	頭, 腦頭瓜
	Ningbo	骷顱頭, 骷郎頭, 頭, 骷顱頭甏 derogatory, 骷顱頭瓶 derogatory, 六斤四兩 humorous
	Wenzhou	頭, 六斤四 secret
	Jinhua	頭, 葫粒頭 humorous
Xiang	Changsha	腦殼
	Xiangxiang	腦殼
	Loudi	腦殼
	Shuangfeng	腦殼
	Hengyang	腦殼
	Quanzhou	腦殼
Xiangnan Tuhua	Jiangyong	腦牯

Pronunciation 2

Mandarin
(Pinyin): shǒu (shou³)

(Zhuyin): ㄕㄡˇ
Cantonese (Jyutping): sau² / sau³

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: shǒu
  - Zhuyin: ㄕㄡˇ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: shǒu
  - Wade–Giles: shou³
  - Yale: shǒu
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shoou
  - Palladius: шоу (šou)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: sau² / sau³
  - Yale: sáu / sau
  - Cantonese Pinyin: sau² / sau³
  - Guangdong Romanization: seo² / seo³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɐu̯³⁵/, /sɐu̯³³/

Middle Chinese: syuwH

Rime
Character	首
Reading #	2/2
Initial (聲)	書 (26)
Final (韻)	尤 (136)
Tone (調)	Departing (H)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	舒救切
Baxter	syuwH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ɕɨu^H/
Pan Wuyun	/ɕiu^H/
Shao Rongfen	/ɕiəu^H/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ɕuw^H/
Li Rong	/ɕiu^H/
Wang Li	/ɕĭəu^H/
Bernhard Karlgren	/ɕi̯ə̯u^H/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	shòu
Expected Cantonese Reflex	sau³

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*l̥uʔ-s/

(Zhengzhang): /*hljus/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	首
Reading #	2/2
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	shǒu
Middle Chinese	‹ syuw^H ›
Old Chinese	/*l̥uʔ-s/
English	turn the head towards
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	首
Reading #	2/2
No.	11672
Phonetic component	首
Rime group	幽
Rime subdivision	1
Corresponding MC rime	狩
Old Chinese	/*hljus/

Definitions

首

(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to report someone to the authorities; to plead guilty
自首 ― zìshǒu ― to turn oneself in; to give up; to surrender
(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to face (a direction)

Compounds

References

“首”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[1], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

Japanese

Kanji

首

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

Go-on: しゅ (shu, Jōyō)
Kan-on: しゅう (shū)
Kun: くび (kubi, 首, Jōyō)、おびと (obito, 首)、こうべ (kōbe, 首)^{←かうべ (kaube, 首, historical)}、しるし (shirushi, 首)、つかさ (tsukasa, 首)、かしら (kashira, 首)、はじめ (hajime, 首め)、もうす (mōsu, 首す)
Nanori: おびと (obito)、こべ (kobe)、す (su)

Compounds

機(き)首(しゅ) (kishu)

Japanese Wikipedia has an article on:

首

Wikipedia ^ja

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
首
くび Grade: 2
kun'yomi

Alternative spelling
頚

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *kunpi.

Pronunciation

(Tokyo) くび [kùbí] (Heiban – [0])^[1]
IPA^(key): [kɯ̟bʲi]

Noun

首(くび) • (kubi)

neck (part of the body connecting head and torso)
the neck and head as a whole
Synonym: (as a trophy) 首級 (shukyū)

首(くび)無(な)し
kubinashi
headless

首(くび)を刎(は)ねる
kubiohaneru
to behead
dismissal from employment

Derived terms

足(あし)首(くび) (ashikubi)
猪(い)首(くび) (ikubi)
雁(かり)首(くび) (karikubi) goose's neck, something resembling a goose's neck; corona (circumference of the base of the glans penis in human males)
雁(がん)首(くび) (gankubi) bowl (part of a pipe); human neck or head
首(くび)っ引(ぴ)き (kubippiki)
首(くび)輪(わ) (kubiwa)
手(て)首(くび) (tekubi)
花(はな)首(くび) (hanakubi)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
首
おびと Grade: 2
kun'yomi

From Old Japanese. First cited to the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.^[2]

Shift from Old Japanese 大人 (opobito, “boss, chief”, literally “big person”).^[2]^[3]

/opobito/ → /obito/

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [o̞bʲito̞]

Noun

首(おびと) • (obito)

(archaic) one who rules or commands a group of people: a chief

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
首
こうべ Grade: 2
kun'yomi

Kanji in this term
首
かしら Grade: 2
kun'yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 首 – see the following entry.

【頭かしら】2	[counter] a head, as when counting people, or cattle or other livestock [noun] 頭, 首: the head of a doll
【頭こうべ】2	[noun] head

(This term, 首, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
首
しゅ Grade: 2
goon

From Middle Chinese 首 (MC syuwX|syuwH).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ɕɨ]

Counter

首(しゅ) • (-shu)

poems and songs

Noun

首(しゅ) • (shu)

(rare) the first one; a lord

References

^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
^ Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 [Daijisen] (in Japanese), First edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN

Korean

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 首 (MC syuwX). Recorded as Middle Korean 슈〮 (sywú) (Yale: syu) in Hunmong Jahoe (訓蒙字會 / 훈몽자회), 1527.

Hanja

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

首

Wikisource

首 (eumhun 머리 수 (meori su))

hanja form^? of 수 (“head”)

Compounds

부수 (部首, busu)
수긍 (首肯, sugeung)
수뇌 (首腦, sunoe)
수도 (首都, sudo)
수령 (首領, suryeong)
수상 (首相, susang)
수석 (首席, suseok)
수장 (首長, sujang)
원수 (元首, wonsu)

References

국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典. [2]

Vietnamese

Han character

首: Hán Nôm readings: thủ, thú, siều

chữ Hán form of thủ (“head”).
chữ Hán form of thú (“confess”).

Compounds

thủ

thú

[DJR-1] Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

[KDJ-2] 2.0 ^2.1 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

[DJS-3] Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 [Daijisen] (in Japanese), First edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN

[1]

[2]

[3]

首

Translingual

Han character

Derived characters

Further reading

Chinese

Glyph origin

Etymology

Pronunciation 1

Definitions

Synonyms

Pronunciation 2

Definitions

Compounds

References

Japanese

Kanji

Readings

Compounds

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

See also

Etymology 3

Etymology 4

Pronunciation

Counter

Noun

See also

References

Korean

Etymology

Hanja

Compounds

References

Vietnamese

Han character

Compounds