縣

縣 (Kangxi radical 120, 糸+10, 16 strokes, cangjie input 月火竹女火 (BFHVF), four-corner 6299₃, composition ⿰⿱⿴𠀃三小系(GTV) or ⿰県系(HJK))

• 懸 (悬)

• 县 (simplification)
  • also simplified within the compound character 悬 from 懸
• 県 (simplification)

• KangXi: page 934, character 23
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 27784
• Dae Jaweon: page 1373, character 8
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 5, page 3435, character 11
• Unihan data for U+7E23

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

Shuowen: Ideogrammic compound (會意) : 𥄉 + 系 – to hang 系 by the head 𥄉 (hair hanging down).

Original form of 懸. Originally in bronze and bamboo slip scripts, Ideogrammic compound (會意) : 目 + 木 + 糸 - to hang with the string 糸 by the head 目 (using an eye to represent a head) on a tree 木. In Qin bamboo slip scripts, some of 目 + 木 were corrupted to 県 (with one straight horizontal line rather than 𠃊) which interpreted to a reversed 首 head by Shuowen, and 糸 was corrupted to 系.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

縣

1. A type of administrative division:
   1. (historical, in ancient China) district; prefecture
   2. (in Mainland China) county (third level division that is now generally restricted to rural areas, contrasted with urban districts (區／区 (qū)))
   3. (in Taiwan) county (first level division that used to be under the jurisdiction of a province but are now directly administered by the central government)
   4. (in Japan) prefecture
   5. (in the United States) county (second level division under the jurisdiction of a state, excluding Alaska and Louisiana)

      洛杉磯縣／洛杉矶县  ―  luòshānjī xiàn  ―  Los Angeles County

2. (in many cases but not always) county seat (the town which serves as the seat of government of such divisions)
3. a surname

• (first-level divisions): 省 (shěng), 市 (shì); 道 (dào) (historical)
• (second-level divisions): 區／区 (qū); 州 (zhōu), 市 (shì), 府 (fǔ), 郡 (jùn), 道 (dào) (historical)

Others:

• → English: hsien, xian
• → Iu Mien: nquenc
• → Lingao: hin⁴
• → Lü: ᦶᦉᧃᧈ (ṡaen¹)
• → Mongolian: сияан (sijaan)
• → Zhuang: yen

縣

1. ^† Alternative form of 懸／悬 (xuán, “to hang; to suspend”).

   • 不狩不獵，胡瞻爾庭有縣鶉兮？ [Pre-Classical Chinese, trad.]
     不狩不猎，胡瞻尔庭有悬鹑兮？ [Pre-Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Classic of Poetry, c. 11^th – 7^th centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Bù shòu bù liè, hú zhān ěr tíng yǒu xuán chún xī? [Pinyin]

     You do not follow the chase;
     — How do we see the quails hanging in your courtyards?

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names, kyūjitai kanji, shinjitai form 県)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

• On (unclassified): けん (ken)
• Kun: かける (kakeru, 縣ける); かかる (kakaru, 縣かる); あがた (agata, 縣)

縣 (eumhun 고을 현 (go'eul hyeon))

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

縣 (eumhun 매달 현 (maedal hyeon))

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

縣: Hán Nôm readings: huyện

1. chữ Hán form of huyện (“district”).