Han character 亃

Two old dictionary glosses exist, and both are disputed.

Taiwan's Ministry of Education dictionary of character variants lists “worry” and a beast under separate readings. A 2010 study argues the “worry” gloss grew from a misreading in dictionary transmission, while the beast reading reflects 粼 copied as 亃. The creature is described as pig-like, yellow-bodied, white-headed and white-tailed; the study connects it to 聞粼 in the Chinese classic 《山海經》 (Classic of Mountains and Seas). The classic says its appearance foretells strong winds.

How is 亃 related to 粼?

A historical study traces 亃 to altered copies of 粼.

The 2010 paper follows the form through medieval Chinese rhyme dictionaries—books that group characters by sound and tone—and cites 《萬象名義》 (a character dictionary) and a copy of 《王韻》 (a rhyme dictionary), where 粼 appears written as 亃. It connects the change to reshaped components during copying and argues that 亃 is a transmitted form of 粼, not a newly created sign.