Glyph Origins

Radical ⼞ (31)

四 (U+56DB)

ShangShang
(Bin)		Early
W.Zhou		Chunqiu
(Jin)		Chunqiu
(Chu)		Zhanguo
(Jin)		Zhanguo
(Qin)		QinE.HanNanbei
(N.Wei)
集1225合2354臼集3862集236新收519集2609秦陶1610集證143.168乙瑛碑南0091X

{呬} *C̥.lri[j]s “breath” or {泗} *sV.li[j]s “nasal mucus” ♪→ {四} *sV.li[j]s “four”

Depiction of a nose (自) with air or nasal mucus coming out of it.

  • 劉洪濤 2018 - 釋“四”
  • 劉洪濤 2019 - 形體特點對古文字考釋重要性研究 (173-183)
  • 季旭昇 2014 - 說文新證 [2nd ed.] (948)

回 (U+56DE)

Zhanguo
(Chu)		QinHanNanbei
(N.Qi)
上七.君乙1北.從軍舉21.1.41竇泰墓誌

{圍} *[w]əj “to encircle” ♪→ {回} *[w]ˤəj “to turn round”

Depiction of an encircled circle.

  • 鄔可晶 2019 - 說“回”

圆 (U+5706)

Shortening of 圓 by analogy with 貝 > 贝. Modern simplified form of 圓 in China.

  • Bökset R. 2021 - Long Story of Short Forms: Simplified Chinese Characters from A to Z (360-361)

園 (U+5712)

{園} *[C.w]an “garden”

囗 ENCIRCLE + ♪袁 *[W]AN.

  • 李學勤 (ed.) 2012 - 字源 (561)

圓 (U+5713)

{圓} *[w]ran “round”

囗 ENCIRCLE + ♪員 *[W]AN.

  • 李學勤 (ed.) 2012 - 字源 (558-559)

Forms:

圆 - Shortening by analogy with 貝 > 贝. Modern simplified form in China.

円 - Shortening based on the replacement of 員 with 丿. Modern simplified form in Japan.