Chinese characters

Chinese characters are written signs that represent morphemes and syllables in Chinese. They are also used, in adapted forms and roles, in Japanese and historically in Korean and Vietnamese writing.

Chinese character structure: The organization of strokes and components within a Chinese character. Characters combine structured parts rather than forming an undifferentiated picture.
Chinese character encoding: The assignment of digital codes to Chinese characters and related symbols. Digital text requires consistent identities for the large character inventory.
Shang dynasty: A Bronze Age Chinese dynasty known especially through archaeological sites and oracle-bone inscriptions. Shang divination inscriptions establish the earliest extensive record of Chinese writing.
Kanji: Chinese-derived characters used in Japanese writing, alongside kana syllabaries. Japanese adopted characters while assigning them Japanese readings and combining them with kana.
Alphabet: A writing system whose basic signs represent consonant and vowel sounds. Unlike alphabets, Chinese characters generally represent morphemes and syllables rather than individual phonemes.
Radical (Chinese characters): A component used to classify Chinese characters in dictionaries and often associated with meaning. Radicals provide a major route for organizing and looking up characters.
Chinese input methods: Systems for entering Chinese text using keyboards or other electronic interfaces. Input methods turn pronunciations, components, or strokes into character selections.
Bronze script: Chinese writing inscribed on or cast into bronze vessels, especially during the Zhou period. Bronze inscriptions preserve a major stage between oracle-bone writing and later scripts.
Hanja: Chinese characters used to write Korean, especially in historical texts and selected modern contexts. Korean writing incorporated characters to represent Sino-Korean vocabulary.
Syllabary: A writing system whose basic signs represent syllables. Characters and syllabaries differ in what their basic signs encode, though Japanese uses both.

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