What 脐 means
It names the body’s navel. It is the hollow left when the umbilical cord detaches, the spot you know from words like 脐带, umbilical cord.
The earliest source verified here is the Shuowen Jiezi tradition, compiled around 100 CE. It records an older form, 𪗇, and analyzes 臍 as 肉, flesh, plus 齊 for sound. That makes it an anatomical naming job, not a named invention.
Why does 脐 look different from 臍?
脐 is simplified; 臍 is traditional. The two write the same navel word; mainland simplified text uses 脐, Taiwan, Hong Kong and older print use 臍.
The word also names a central dent in fruit or objects, as in a navel orange, and the hard underside of a crab. Those are shape-based extensions of the navel sense.
Questions people ask
1How do you pronounce 脐?
qí, with a rising tone in Mandarin. Copy it from the palette above or type pinyin qi and pick 脐.
How to type 脐
脐\8110Codes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.