巫

巫 U+5DEB, 巫 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5DEB ← 巪 [U+5DEA] CJK Unified Ideographs 巬 → [U+5DEC]

Translingual

Han character

巫 (Kangxi radical 48, 工+4, 7 strokes, cangjie input 一人人 (MOO), four-corner 1010₈, composition ⿻工从)

Derived characters

• 𭇹, 𡷯, 𢃀, 𭰘, 𭸊, 𬂳, 𦈊, 誣(诬), 𬋲
• 覡(觋), 𨿏, 鵐(鹀), 莁, 筮, 毉, 𪚠, 靈, 𠳄, 𡋻, 𢀣, 𧨈, 𭏞, 𨽙, 𨽭, 𭩗, 𥽛, 𬝶, 𧈀

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 325, character 19
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 8728
• Dae Jaweon: page 629, character 7
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 412, character 8
• Unihan data for U+5DEB

Chinese

simp. and trad.		巫
alternative forms		𢀣 𢍮 𠮎

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 巫
Shang	Western Zhou	Warring States		Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)		Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Qin slip script	Ancient script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

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

	Old Chinese
巫	*ma
誣	*ma
莁	*ma
鵐	*ma

Pictogram (象形) – originally two pieces of jade crossed over each other as used in ancient shamanistic practices focused around sacrifices.

As an alternative, according to Zou Jingheng (鄒景蘅), they represent two 工 crossed over, hence two tools made of bamboo or yarrow stalks; the original meaning should be partly preserved in 筮.

Etymology

“shaman; witch”

This word initially referred to spirit medium/shaman of either sex, but eventually female when contrasted with 覡 (OC *ɡeːɡ, “male shaman”). Various hypotheses exist regarding its etymology (Schuessler, 2007):

1. Cognate with 舞 (OC *maʔ, “to dance”), derived from the original form 無 (OC *ma, “to dance; not to have”), perhaps due to the fact that shamans could engage in ritual dances.
2. Cognate with 母 (OC *mɯʔ, “female”).
3. Cognate with འབའ་མོ ('ba' mo, “sorceress”), from Tibetan འབའ་པོ ('ba' po, “magician, sorcerer”).
4. Cognate with 誣 (OC *ma, “to deceive”).
5. Victor Mair (1990) and Jao Tsung-I (1990) proposed that this is a loanword from Old Persian 𐎶𐎦𐎢𐏁 (maguš) (more at Wikipedia: Magus). (Mair, 1990; Mair, 2012).

Thai หมอ (mɔ̌ɔ, “doctor”) < Proto-Tai *ʰmo:ᴬ (“shaman”) is generally assumed to be a Sino-Tibetan loan (Pittayaporn, 2014). Note also similarities to Burmese မှော် (hmau, “sorcery”). More at Wu (shaman), Magi#In Chinese sources, magus.

“Malay”

Clipping of 巫來由／巫来由 (wūláiyóu), a transcription of Malay Melayu.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): wū, wú (wu¹, wu²)

  (Zhuyin): ㄨ, ㄨˊ

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): mou⁴

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): mu³

• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): mù

  (Hailu, HRS): mu

  (Meixian, Guangdong): mu²

• Eastern Min (BUC): ŭ
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): bû

  (Teochew, Peng'im): bhu⁵

• Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ⁶vu

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: wū
    • Zhuyin: ㄨ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: wu
    • Wade–Giles: wu¹
    • Yale: wū
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: u
    • Palladius: у (u)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /u⁵⁵/
      
  • (Standard Chinese, literary variant in Taiwan)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: wú
    • Zhuyin: ㄨˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: wú
    • Wade–Giles: wu²
    • Yale: wú
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: wu
    • Palladius: у (u)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /u³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: mou⁴
    • Yale: mòuh
    • Cantonese Pinyin: mou⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: mou⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mou̯²¹/
  • (Taishanese, Taicheng)
    • Wiktionary: mu³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ᵐbu²²/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: mù
    • Hakka Romanization System: mu^ˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: mu²
    • Sinological IPA: /mu¹¹/
  • (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
    • Hakka Romanization System: mu
    • Sinological IPA: /mu⁵⁵/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: mu²
    • Sinological IPA: /mu¹¹/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: ŭ
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /u⁵⁵/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bû
    • Tâi-lô: bû
    • Phofsit Daibuun: buu
    • IPA (Xiamen): /bu²⁴/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /bu²⁴/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /bu¹³/
    • IPA (Taipei): /bu²⁴/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /bu²³/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: bhu⁵
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: bû
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /bu⁵⁵/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ⁶vu
    • MiniDict: vu^去
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ³vu
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /vu²³/

---

• Middle Chinese: mju

Rime
Character	巫
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	明 (4)
Final (韻)	虞 (24)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	武夫切
Baxter	mju
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/mɨo/
Pan Wuyun	/mio/
Shao Rongfen	/mio/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/muə̆/
Li Rong	/mio/
Wang Li	/mĭu/
Bernhard Karlgren	/mi̯u/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	wú
Expected Cantonese Reflex	mou4

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*C.m(r)[o]/

  (Zhengzhang): /*ma/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	巫
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	wū
Middle Chinese	‹ mju ›
Old Chinese	/*C.m(r)[o]/
English	magician
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	巫
Reading #	1/1
No.	13062
Phonetic component	巫
Rime group	魚
Rime subdivision	0
Corresponding MC rime	無
Old Chinese	/*ma/

Definitions

巫

1. shaman; witch; sorcerer; wizard
2. witch doctor
3. (chiefly Malaysia, Singapore) Malay; Melayu; relating to ethnic Malays

   巫統／巫统  ―  wūtǒng  ―  United Malays National Organisation, UMNO

4. a surname

   巫啟賢／巫启贤  ―  Wū Qǐxián  ―  Eric Moo (Malaysian Chinese singer-songwriter)

Descendants

• → English: wu

Compounds

• 大巫嫗 / 大巫妪
• 女巫 (nǚwū)
• 小巫見大巫 / 小巫见大巫 (xiǎowújiàndàwú)
• 巫人 (wūrén)
• 巫咸
• 巫妖 (wūyāo)
• 巫婆 (wūpó, “witch, sorceress”)
• 巫子
• 巫山 (Wūshān, “Wushan”)
• 巫山之夢 / 巫山之梦
• 巫山之會 / 巫山之会
• 巫山洛浦
• 巫山雲雨 / 巫山云雨 (wūshān yúnyǔ)
• 巫峰
• 巫峽 / 巫峡 (Wūxiá)
• 巫師 / 巫师 (wūshī, “sorcerer”)
• 巫教 (wūjiào)
• 巫族
• 巫樂 / 巫乐
• 巫毒教 (wūdújiào, “voodoo”)
• 巫溪 (Wūxī)
• 巫神 (wūshén)
• 巫祝 (wūzhù)
• 巫蠱 / 巫蛊
• 巫蠱之獄 / 巫蛊之狱
• 巫術 / 巫术 (wūshù, “shamanism, witchcraft, sorcery”)
• 巫裔 (wūyì)
• 巫覡 / 巫觋 (wūxí)
• 巫語 / 巫语 (wūyǔ)
• 巫醫 / 巫医 (wūyī, “witch doctor”)
• 祝巫
• 神巫 (shénwū)
• 雲雨巫山 / 云雨巫山

References

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