葉 U+F96E,葉 CJK COMPATIBILITY IDEOGRAPH-F96E ←省 [U+F96D] CJK Compatibility Ideographs 說 → [U+F96F]

Stroke order

Japan

葉 (Kangxi radical 140,艸+9, 12 (Japan), 13 (traditional Chinese) strokes,cangjie input廿心廿木 (TPTD),four-corner4490₄,composition⿱艹枼)

• 僷, 擛, 㵩, 瞸, 蠂, 䜓, 鐷, 䭟

• Kangxi Dictionary:page 1044, character 3
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 31387
• Dae Jaweon: page 1504, character 18
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 5, page 3243, character 15
• Unihan data for U+8449

• Unihan data for U+F96E

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 /形声,OC*hljeb, *leb): semantic 艸 + phonetic 枼(“leaf”).枼 is the original pictogram for this word;艸 was added to differentiate.^[1]

Wikipedia has articles on:

• 葉 /叶(Chinese)
• 葉 /叶(Cantonese)
• 叶(Wu)

FromProto-Sino-Tibetan*lap(“leaf”). Cognate withTibetanལོ་མ(lo ma,“leaf”), WesternTibetanལོབ་མ(lob ma,“leaf”),Jingpholap(“leaf”). Related to世 (OC*hljebs, “world”).

This is part of the word family *lVp meaning “flat”, represented by the phonetic component枼 (OC*leb). Compare also茶 (OC*rlaː, “tea < *leaf”).

葉

1. leaf;petal(Classifier:塊／块c; 片c)

   紅葉／红叶  ― hóngyè  ―  red autumn leaves

2. era;epoch

   十九世紀中後葉／十九世纪中后叶  ― shíjiǔ shìjì zhōng hòuyè  ―  middle and late 19th century

3. leaf-like thing

   肺葉／肺叶  ― fèiyè  ―  lobe of the lung

   百葉窗／百叶窗  ― bǎiyèchuāng  ―  Venetian blinds

4. Classifier for small boats.

   一葉扁舟／一叶扁舟  ― yīyè piānzhōu  ―  a tiny boat

   • 1962,鳳閣恩仇未了情:

     一葉輕舟去，人隔萬重山[Literary Cantonese,trad.]
     一叶轻舟去，人隔万重山[Literary Cantonese,simp.]

     jat¹jip⁶ hing¹ zau¹ heoi³, jan⁴ gaak³ maan⁶ cung⁴ saan¹[Jyutping]

     You've left in a light boat, and we are separated by ten thousand mountains

   • 2022, “某種老朋友 [Stranger]”,林夕 [Albert Leung] (lyrics),澤日生 [Christopher Chak] (music)‎^[1]performed by林家謙 [Terence Lam]:

     能暫時懷念某種老朋友　不過未能共享一葉舟[Literary Cantonese,trad.]
     能暂时怀念某种老朋友　不过未能共享一叶舟[Literary Cantonese,simp.]

     nang⁴ zaam⁶ si⁴ waai⁴ nim⁶ mau⁵ zung² lou⁵ pang⁴ jau⁵, bat¹ gwo³ mei⁶ nang⁴ gung⁶ hoeng² jat¹jip⁶ zau¹[Jyutping]

     I can temporarily reminisce about some sort of old friend, but I cannot share a boat with them

5. alternative form of頁 /页(“page”)
6. asurname

   葉飛／叶飞  ― Yè Fēi  ― Ye Fei (Chinese military general and politician of the People's Republic of China)

• → English:Ye,Yeh,Yip,Ip,Yap,Yeap
• → Tagalog:Yap

Wikipedia has articles on:

• 葉姓 /叶姓(Chinese)
• 葉氏 /叶氏(Cantonese)
• 葉姓 /叶姓(Gan)
• Ia̍p (sèⁿ)(Min Nan)

(Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

葉

1. (～縣)Ye County,Henan,China
2. asurname

Min NanWikipedia has an article on:

hio̍h

Wikipedia^nan

葉

1. (Min)alternative form of箬(“leaf”)

• “葉”, in教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien),Ministry of Education, R.O.C.,2025.

(Third grade kyōiku kanji)

• Go-on:しょう(shō)^{←せふ(sefu,historical)}、よう(yō,Jōyō)^{←えふ(efu,historical)}
• Kan-on:しょう(shō)^{←せふ(sefu,historical)}、よう(yō,Jōyō)^{←えふ(efu,historical)}
• Kun:は(ha,葉,Jōyō)
• Nanori:よ(yo)、わ(wa)

JapaneseWikipedia has an article on:

葉

Wikipedia^ja

EnglishWikipedia has an article on:

Leaf

Wikipedia

/pa/ →/ɸa/ →/ha/

FromOld Japanese,^[1] fromProto-Japonic*pa.

Probably cognate withOld Japanese verb生(は)ゆ(hayu,“tosprout, togrow”) → modern生(は)える(haeru), and with羽(は)(ha,“feather;wing”).

Suggested in some sources as possibly cognate with歯(は)(ha,“tooth”), from the way that both sprout and then later fall,^[2] and with刃(は)(ha,“blade”) from similarities in shape (cf.Englishblade). However, the pitch accent patterns are different;葉 and羽 are both unaccented, while歯 and刃 are both accented. This may reflect two disparate*pa roots in the ancient language.

First attested in theKojiki of 712CE with the phonetic spelling波.^[1]

Cognate withOkinawan葉(fā).

• (Tokyo)は[hà] (Heiban – [0])^[3]
• IPA^(key): [ha̠]

葉(は)• (ha)  (counter枚)

1. leaf,needle,blade (of a plant)

   Synonym:葉っぱ(happa)

/epu/ →/efu/ →/eu/ →/joː/

FromMiddle Chinese葉 (MC yep, “leaf”).

• (Tokyo)よー[yóꜜò] (Atamadaka – [1])^[3]
• IPA^(key): [jo̞ː]

葉(よう)• (yō) ^{←えふ(efu)?}

1. leaf,needle,blade(of a plant)
2. aseason, anage: a shorter period of time within a longer one
3. anadministration: the period of time during which a certainperson holds a certainoffice