佛

佛 (Kangxi radical 9, 人+5, 7 strokes, cangjie input 人中中弓 (OLLN), four-corner 2522₇, composition ⿰亻弗)

• 𠲽, 梻, 𩎵, 𡌅, 𰂖

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 99, character 4
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 517
• Dae Jaweon: page 208, character 11
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 140, character 3
• Unihan data for U+4F5B

Historical forms of the character 佛
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts
Small seal script s05732 Transcribed ancient scripts L26012 L26013
References: Mostly from Richard Sears' Chinese Etymology site (authorisation), which in turn draws data from various collections of ancient forms of Chinese characters, including: Shuowen Jiezi (small seal), Jinwen Bian (bronze inscriptions), Liushutong (Liushutong characters) and Yinxu Jiaguwen Bian (oracle bone script).

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *bɯd) : semantic 亻 + phonetic 弗 (OC *pɯd).

Ji (1998v7) considers it likely borrowed from Iranian (compare Sogdian 𐼾𐼴𐽂𐼷 (pwty), 𐫁𐫇𐫤𐫏 (bwty /⁠Pute, Bute, βute⁠/), Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (bwt'), 𐫁𐫇𐫤 (bwt /⁠But⁠/), Parthian 𐫁𐫇𐫎 (bwṯ /⁠But, Butt⁠/)), ultimately from Sanskrit बुद्ध (buddha, “awakened, enlightened”, past passive participle), whence also 佛陀 (MC bjut da), but the Chinese morpheme 佛 is not a direct contraction or clipping of the latter.

佛

1. (Buddhism) Buddha; The Enlightened One

   佛陀  ―  fótuó  ―  Buddha

   佛教  ―  fójiào  ―  Buddhism

2. (Buddhism) statue of Buddha
3. (by extension) Buddhist scriptures
4. (by extension) Buddhism; Buddhist doctrines

• (Buddha): 佛祖 (fózǔ)

Others:

• → Chadong: fut⁸
• ⇒ Mongolian: ᠪᠤᠷᠬᠠᠨ (burqan) / бурхан (burxan)
• → Vietnamese: Bụt (“a wise and kind old man in folklore”)
• → Zhuang: baed

佛

1. ^† Alternative form of 拂 (fú, “to go against; to be contrary to”)

佛

1. ^† Alternative form of 弼 (bì, “to assist”)

   • 佛時仔肩，示我顯德行。 [Pre-Classical Chinese, trad.]
     佛时仔肩，示我显德行。 [Pre-Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Classic of Poetry, c. 11^th – 7^th centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Bì shí zǐjiān, shì wǒ xiǎn déxíng. [Pinyin]

     Assist me to bear the burden [of my position],
     And show me how to display a virtuous conduct.

2. a surname

   • 佛肸以中牟畔。 [Classical Chinese, trad. and simp.]

     From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Bì Xī yǐ Zhōngmù pàn. [Pinyin]

     Bi Xi is in rebellion, holding possession of Zhongmu.

佛

1. ^† Alternative form of 勃 (bó, “prosperous, thriving”)

Dialectal pronunciation of 服 (fú). Popularized by the streamer Sun Xiaochuan.

佛

1. (Mainland China, Internet slang) Alternative form of 服 (“You win”)

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

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names, kyūjitai kanji, shinjitai form 仏)

1. Kyūjitai form of 仏

• Go-on: ぶつ (butsu)
• Kan-on: ふつ (futsu)
• Kun: ほとけ (hotoke, 佛)
• Nanori: さとる (satoru)

From Middle Chinese 佛 (MC bjut).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [puɭ]
• Phonetic hangul: [불]

Wikisource 佛 (eumhun 부처 불 (bucheo bul))

1. Hanja form^? of 불 (“Buddha”).
2. Hanja form^? of 불 (“France (in compounds, in news media)”).

佛 • (Bul) (hangeul 불)

1. (in news headlines) Short for 佛(불)蘭(란)西(서) (Bullanseo, “France”).

A common convention in news headlines, this is almost always written solely in the Hanja form, even in contemporary Korean text otherwise devoid of any Hanja.

• 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典.

Most likely from Proto-Koreanic *Pwutukye (“Buddha”).

佛 (poto₂ke₂) (kana ほとけ)

1. (Buddhism) a carving, image, statue, or other likeness of a buddha
   • c. 759, Man’yōshū, book 16, poem 3841:

     佛造眞朱不足者水渟池田乃阿曾我鼻上乎穿禮

     poto₂ke₂ tukuru ma-so₂po tarazupa mi₁du tamaru Ike₂da no₂ aso₂ ga pana no₂ upe₂ wo pore

     For the Buddha statue, you lack enough vermilion―so there is the puddle of Lord “Pond Field” Ikeda, dig in that big red nose.[1]

• Japanese: 仏 (hotoke)

佛: Hán Việt readings: phật (符(phù)勿(vật)切(thiết))[1][2][3][4][5], phất[3]
佛: Nôm readings: phật[1][2][3][4][6]

1. chữ Hán form of Phật (“Buddha, the Enlightened One”).
2. chữ Hán form of Phật (“Buddhism”).

佛

1. Sawndip form of baed (“Buddha; shrine; spirit; god”)