Character: 薨
Modern (Beijing) reading: hōng
Preclassic Old Chinese: smhǝ̄ŋ
Classic Old Chinese: sm̥ǝ̄ŋ
Western Han Chinese: sm̥ǝ̄ŋ
Eastern Han Chinese: m̥ǝ̄ŋ
Early Postclassic Chinese: hwǝ̄ŋ
Middle Postclassic Chinese: hwǝ̄ŋ
Late Postclassic Chinese: hwǝ̄ŋ
Middle Chinese: xwʌŋ
English meaning : (perhaps:) be buzzing
Russian meaning[s]: смерть (государя); почить
Shuowen gloss: 公侯卒也.從死.**省聲. [164]
Comments: The original meaning of the character is 'to die (of high officials)', although it is attested only since Han. During Early Zhou the character is used only within the onomatopoeic reduplication 薨薨 *smhǝ̄ŋ-smhǝ̄ŋ 'be buzzing'.
Radical: 140
Four-angle index: 6992
Karlgren code: 0902 g
Shijing occurrences: 5.2_
