xiān
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 the deity of Zoroastrianism (used mainly in 祆教)

Examples

Xiānjiào zài Tángdài yán Sīchóu Zhī Lù chuánrù Zhōngguó.
Zoroastrianism spread into China along the Silk Road during the Tang dynasty.

Tips

history
is not used independently in modern Chinese; it occurs only in 祆教 (Zoroastrianism) and 祆庙 (a fire temple). It was coined for this foreign religion by combining the spirit/altar radical with (heaven), which also supplies the sound.
mistakes
Do not confuse (right side , a religion term) with ('lined jacket', clothing radical) — they look alike but are unrelated.

Components

radical
shì
spirit; altar; worship
The left-side worship radical (the side form of ) marks this as something sacred or religious — here a foreign faith.
phonetic
tiān
heaven; sky
Supplies the sound (reading shifted from tiān to xiān) and hints at the meaning: a heaven-worshipping religion centered on the sky-god.

Stroke Order

xiān