香

香 U+9999, 香 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-9999 ← 馘 [U+9998] CJK Unified Ideographs 馚 → [U+999A]

⾹ U+2FB9, ⾹ KANGXI RADICAL FRAGRANT ← ⾸ [U+2FB8] Kangxi Radicals ⾺ → [U+2FBA]

Stroke order

香 (Kangxi radical 186, 香+0, 9 strokes, cangjie input 竹木日 (HDA), four-corner 2060₉, composition ⿱禾日)

1. Kangxi radical #186, ⾹.

• Appendix:Chinese radical/香
• 㗍, 𡎟, 𪬏, 㴡, 楿, 𤋭, 𤧘, 𥔜, 䅨, 𧪑, 𧯅, 𧹰, 𧽂, 𮠷, 𪨝, 𮬀, 𪋒
• 𠝲, 𧯄, 䫝, 萫, 𥔡, 𥧎, 𩤹, 㐯, 黁, 𤼍, 麘, 䦭

• Japanese: 𛀠 (hentaigana)

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 1428, character 21
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 44518
• Dae Jaweon: page 1955, character 2
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 7, page 4423, character 1
• Unihan data for U+9999

In the oracle bone script, it was ideogrammic compound (會意 / 会意): 黍 (“glutinous millet”) + 口 (“mouth”). The whole character perhaps indicate that millet was used to produce liquor from fermentation which could be drank and/or sacrificed.

In the seal script, the 口 was replaced with the related 甘 (“sweet”). Hence, the most conservative variant is 𪏽.

Currently, the 黍 has simplified into 禾 and the form of the bottom component 甘 has become akin to the unrelated 曰.

trad.		香
simp. #		香
alternative forms		𪏰 𪏽 𥞌 𩡢 麘

香

1. fragrant; fragrance

   Antonym: 臭

2. (of food) aromatic; delicious-smelling
3. (of eating) having the appearance that one really enjoys the food; (of sleep) sound
4. (Internet slang) wonderful; enjoyable (in general)
5. popular
6. perfume
7. (religion) joss stick; incense (Classifier: 支 m c mn; 炷 m c; 根 m; 叢／丛 mn; 束 m; 紮／扎 c)
8. (figurative) woman
9. (chiefly Wu) to kiss
10. (Cantonese, euphemistic) to die

    • 弊啦！監視器香咗，點會噉㗎？ [Cantonese, trad.]
      弊啦！监视器香咗，点会噉㗎？ [Cantonese, simp.]

      From: 1988, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack (TVB's Cantonese dubbed version)

      bai⁶ laa³! gaam¹ si⁶ hei³ hoeng¹ zo², dim² wui⁵ gam² gaa³? [Jyutping]

      Damn! The monitor is dead! How come?

11. (historical) shorthand for Hong Kong during Japanese Occupation between 1941 and 1945
    • 香督 [Cantonese]  ―  hoeng¹ duk¹ [Jyutping]  ―  Governor of Hong Kong

Others:

• → Indonesian: hio (“joss stick, incense”)

trad.		香
simp. #		香

香

1. (Hokkien, Teochew, Puxian Min) alternative form of 芳 (“fragrant”)

• “香”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[2], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)

• Go-on: こう (kō, Jōyō)^{←かう (kau, historical)}
• Kan-on: きょう (kyō, Jōyō ^†)^{←きやう (kyau, historical)}
• Kun: か (ka, 香, Jōyō)、かおり (kaori, 香り, Jōyō)^{←かをり (kawori, 香り, historical)}、かおる (kaoru, 香る, Jōyō)^{←かをる (kaworu, 香る, historical)}、かざ (kaza, 香)、かんばしい (kanbashii, 香しい)、かぐわしい (kaguwashii, 香しい)

Kanji in this term
香
か Grade: 4
kun'yomi

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.^[1] Compare かざ (kaza, “smell, odor, scent”).

• (Tokyo) か [kà] (Heiban – [0])^[2][3]
• (Tokyo) か [káꜜ] (Atamadaka – [1])^[2][3]
• IPA^(key): [ka̠]

香(か) • (ka) 

1. a pleasant smell; a scent, a fragrance, an aroma

• 香(かお)る (kaoru)
• 香(かお)り (kaori)

Kanji in this term
香
きょう Grade: 4
kan'on

From Middle Chinese 香 (MC xjang).

• (Tokyo) きょー [kyòó] (Heiban – [0])^[4]
• (Tokyo) きょー [kyóꜜò] (Atamadaka – [1])^[4][3]
• IPA^(key): [kʲo̞ː]

香(きょう) • (kyō) ^{←きやう (kyau)?}

1. clipping of 香車 (kyōsha, “incense chariot”)

Kanji in this term
香
こう Grade: 4
goon

From Middle Chinese 香 (MC xjang). The goon reading, so likely an earlier borrowing. Compare Vietnamese hương (“fragrance; incense”).

• (Tokyo) こー [kóꜜò] (Atamadaka – [1])^[3]
• IPA^(key): [ko̞ː]

香(こう) • (kō) ^{←かう (kau)?}

1. incense

   Synonym: 御香 (okō)

Kanji in this term
香
かざ Grade: 4
kun'yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 香 – see the following entry.

【かざ】 [noun] 香, 気: (now dialectal) a smell, odor, scent Alternative spelling 気

(This term, 香, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “Middle Korean readings, if any”)

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ça̠ŋ]
• Phonetic hangul: [향]

Wikisource

香 (eum 향 (hyang))

1. hanja form^? of 향 (“fragrance; perfume; incense”)

香: Hán Việt readings: hương (虛(hư)良(lương)切(thiết))^{[1][2][3][4][5]}
香: Nôm readings: nhang^{[2][3][6][4][5][7]}, hương^[1][2][4][7], hang^[1], nhàng^[1]

1. chữ Hán form of hương (“fragrance; incense”)
2. chữ Nôm form of nhang (“incense”)
3. chữ Hán form of Hương (“a female given name”)

   胡春香 ― Hồ Xuân Hương