ON THE CHARACTER

數(shù)

A character with numerous functions

數(shù)字賦能，無限可能

BRONZE SCRIPT

CLERICAL SCRIPT

SEAL SCRIPT

How did one become a virtuous man in ancient China? Known asjunzi(君子),the ideal man as envisioned by Confucius had to master the “six arts,” which were“rites,music,archery,charioteering,calligraphy,and mathematics (禮樂射御書數(shù) lǐ yuè shè yù shū shù),” according to theRites of Zhou(《周禮》),a work on politics and culture during Confucius’s time.This meant that in ancient times,knowing your math made you a gentleman.

First appearing in bronze script in the Warring States period (475—221 BCE),the character 數(shù) (shǔ) was one of many Chinese terms meaning “to count.” The left partindicates pronunciation,while 攴 on the right,shaped like a hand tying a knot on a string,means to calculate,according to the second century’sAnalytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters(《說文解字》).The character was simplified over centuries into its present form.

The character,when read in the fourth (falling) tone,also appears in a number of terms related to numbers,which are themselves called 數(shù)字 (shùzì).For example,the study of numbers is generally called 數(shù)學(xué) (shùxué,mathematics),and mathematicians work with 整數(shù) (zhěngshù,integers),未知數(shù) (wèizhīshù,unknown numbers),and 代數(shù) (dàishù,algebra).You can use次數(shù) (cìshù) to refer to frequency,like和朋友打電話的次數(shù)越來越少 (Hé péngyou dǎ diànhuà de cìshù yuè lái yuè shǎo,My calls with friends have become less and less frequent).

Read with the third tone,數(shù) (shǔ) can also mean “to calculate.” For example,你去數(shù)數(shù)有多少學(xué)生 (Nǐ qù shǔshǔ yǒu duōshao xuéshēng,Please count how many students there are).The character also indicates quantity,which is 數(shù)量 (shùliàng).Stars in the night sky are countless,or 數(shù)不勝數(shù) (shǔbúshèngshǔ),while something countable in small quantities is 屈指可數(shù) (qūzhǐ kěshǔ)—which means “can be counted on one hand.”

When you want to express that something is numerous,but can’t give an exact number,數(shù) can be used to indicate “many” or “several.” 數(shù)百(shù bǎi) means “hundreds,” 數(shù)千 (shù qiān) is “thousands,” and a big family can be described as 數(shù)口之家 (shù kǒu zhī jiā).The character can also be read as shuò,meaning “several times” as in the idiom 數(shù)見不鮮 (shuòjiàn bùxiān),which describes something that’s very commonly seen and is no longer novel.

Another meaning for the character is “to list.” For example,歷數(shù) (lìshǔ)means to list a series of items one by one,數(shù)落 (shǔluo) is to scold someone by enumerating their wrongdoings,and a數(shù)典 (shǔdiǎn) is a list of historical tales.But you cannot recount history while omitting your ancestors,otherwise you will be criticized as 數(shù)典忘祖 (shǔdiǎn wàngzǔ),a term later used to scold those who forget their roots and origins.數(shù) can also mean to excel over others.If you want to praise Mr.Zhang as the best singer among your colleagues,you can say,“歌就數(shù)小張唱得最好聽 (Gē jiù shǔ Xiǎo Zhāng chàng de zuì hǎotīng).”

The top performer can be called 數(shù)一數(shù)二 (shǔyī shǔ’èr),as in 他的成績數(shù)一數(shù)二 (Tā de chéngjì shǔyī shǔ’èr).By contrast,if someone is subpar,then they are 數(shù)不上 (shǔbushàng),or 數(shù)不著 (shǔbuzháo).

In classical Chinese,數(shù) was also used to indicate fate,as in the term命數(shù) (mìngshù).If a person’s days are numbered,then they are 氣數(shù)將盡(qìshu jiāngjìn);if they were born with a doomed fate,you can describe them as在數(shù)難逃 (zàishù nántáo).

In the information age,數(shù) also refers to digital technology.As we live in a digital society (數(shù)字化社會 shùzìhuà shèhuì) and embrace big data (大數(shù)據(jù)dàshùjù) and smart devices such as digital cameras (數(shù)字相機(jī) shùzì xiàngjī),digital TVs (數(shù)字電視 shùzì diànshì) and digital phones (數(shù)字電話 shùzì diànhuà),we must not forget to count our blessings—or calculate the costs we pay for such conveniences.