Abstract
In the domain of anatomy, some Chinese characters in anatomical terms possess distinctive morphological significance. Chinese characters evolved from pictographic characters, with some of these pictographs being created by ancient people based on their own body structure. This implies that the comprehension and depiction of the human body structure have been integral since the inception of Chinese characters, and this knowledge has been passed down and developed through the continued inheritance of Chinese characters. Even today, certain characters retain the appearance to reflect the shape of the human body structure. By examining the characters related to vertebrae, cranial fontanel and heart, we can find the unique and enduring link between Chinese characters and the fields of anatomy as well as Chinese traditional medicine.
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Funding
This article was funded by the following projects: 1. Resource construction project of postgraduate education in Nanjing Medical University (2023C001); 2. Curriculum construction project of Tianyuan Class of Nanjing Medical University; 3. The first batch of ideological and political demonstration courses in Jiangsu Province's universities - Human Anatomy (Su Jiao Ban Gao Han [2021] No.11); 4. The first batch of ideological and political demonstration course projects at Nanjing Medical University (JX10131720190503).
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Xia, X., Li, L., Jin, J. et al. Chinese characters carry special anatomical connotations. Anat Sci Int (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12565-024-00771-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12565-024-00771-9