藩 (fān): fence; hedge

Meanings

1 fence; hedge
2 screen; barrier
3 vassal state; fief

Characters

藩

fān

fence; hedge; vassal state

Examples

HSK 4

日本历史上有很多藩国。

Rìběn lìshǐ shàng yǒu hěnduō fānguó.

There were many feudal domains in Japanese history.

HSK 7-9

古代诸侯各守其藩。

Gǔdài zhūhóu gè shǒu qí fān.

In ancient times, each feudal lord guarded his own domain.

Tips

history

In Chinese history, 藩 referred to border regions ruled by vassal lords (藩王/藩镇). The term is also used for Japanese feudal domains (藩/han), as Japan borrowed the Chinese concept. 削藩 (abolishing vassal states) was a major political theme across Chinese dynasties.

Components

radical

艹 cǎo

grass; plant (top radical)

Top grass radical in its compressed three-stroke form, the indexing radical. Originally 藩 referred to a hedge or fence made of woven plants - a vegetal screen marking the boundary of a feudal lord's lands. From that came the modern senses of frontier and vassal state.

phonetic

潘 pān

rice-water; surname

Bottom 潘 supplies the sound - pān drifting to fān through the classic p/f alternation in old Chinese readings. 潘 itself is a common surname and originally named the milky water from washed rice. Pure phonetic role here; meaning sits entirely with the grass radical.