瓜 (gua, “melon”)

The ancient Chinese character for “瓜” looks like a growing melon. There are many different kinds of melons in China. In Chinese, watermelons are known as “西瓜” (xi gua: literally means “western melons”), since they grew in China’s ancient Western Regions. Pumpkins, in Chinese is “南瓜” (nan guang: literally means “south melon”). The source of the name also comes from the original place of the pumpkins which grows first in the southern part of China.

Winter melons, known in Chinese as “冬瓜” (dong gua), derive their name from the fact that they appear to be covered by a thin layer of frost. The character for “瓜” is very pictographic and vivid. Also, the pronunciation is the same as that for the voice of a frog, especially when it is the spring and the frogs awaken from the hibernation, in the countryside in the night, you can hear the “gua gua gua gua” (呱 add a “口” which means the mouth to the character “瓜”) singing of the frogs.