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Study Chinese: North

北(běi)
The original form of the character “北” resembles two people with their backs to each other. The original meaning of it was “back” (背bèi). In the past, losing a battle was known as “败北(bài běi) ”. This is because, when soldiers fled after suffering a defeat, they had their backs to the enemy. When the sun is in the south and people sit down, they like to face the bright and sunny south; in other words, their backs face the north. As a result, “北” later came to mean “north”. Chinese buildings often face south and have their back ends pointing towards the north.

The north, which is furthest from the sun, symbolizes darkness and humidity. Therefore, the north represents “水(shuǐ) ” and is represented by the color black.

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