About, Abridged, or Frugal

by Nao

yaku, tsuzu-mayaka

When this character means “about,” it comes before numbers. Let me find an example from recent news. The Nagashima Museum in Kagoshima is currently exhibiting a figure of Moomintroll.  The newspaper company, Asahi Shimbun, reports that the height of the figure is about 60 cm, saying, “takasa yaku rokujissenchi (60 cm).” Takasa means height.

While meaning “about,” “rough,” or “approximate,” this character also implies “abridged” or “to shorten.” Yōyaku (summary or abstract) and shukuyaku (abridgement) are related words. The yō of yōyaku means “a main point.” The shuku of shukuyaku means “to shorten.”

I think tsuzu-mayaka is almost obsolete, but it tells us the concise meaning of this character. It means humble and frugal. Setsuyaku (saving) and ken’yaku (thrift) are related words. The setsu of setsuyaku means “to save.” The ken of ken’yaku means “economical.”

1. Begin to draw the left-hand side of the character. Draw the sweeping stroke from the top.
2. Draw the short stroke connecting to the previous stroke.
3. Draw the stroke that parallels the first stroke.
4. Draw the sweeping stroke that is almost horizontal.
5. Draw the dot at the end of the previous stroke.
6. Draw the vertical stroke.
7. Draw the sweeping stroke on the left of the vertical stroke.
8. Draw the dot on the other side.
9. Go to the top. Draw the sweeping stroke.
10. Draw the hook.
11. Draw the dot in the hook.

In the dictionary, this is categorized as a 9-stroke character. When you write this character with a pen, the first stroke continues to the second one, and the third stroke continues to the fourth one.

[Via http://calligraphernao.wordpress.com]