Zi Collection, Page Position: Upper Radical: One (yī) Character: chǒu Kangxi Stroke Count: 17 Page 77, Entry 04 According to the Broad Rimes (Guangyun), the Collected Rimes (Jiyun), and the Collected Rimes (Yunhui), the pronunciation is derived from the initial of chì and the final of jiǔ. According to the Correct Rimes (Zhengyun), the pronunciation is derived from the initial of chǐ and the final of jiǔ. It is pronounced chǒu. It is the name of the earthly branch corresponding to the twelfth month. When the Great Year resides in the position of chǒu, it is called Chifenruo — Erya: Explaining the Heavens (Shi Tian). The handle of the Big Dipper points to chǒu — Huainanzi: Training on Seasonal Rules (Shize Xun). Life sprouts in zǐ and begins to knot and bud in chǒu — Book of the Former Han (Qian Han Shu): Treatise on Rhythms and the Calendar (Luli Zhi). Also the name of a deity. The corpse of the goddess Nü Chou — Classic of Mountains and Seas (Shanhaijing). It refers to hand shackles. It follows the radical for hand (yòu), meaning a hand, with something binding it. It is a pictograph. Due to its sound, it was borrowed to represent the character chǒu in the earthly branches, serving as a symbol for the twelfth month — Correction of Errors in the Six Scripts (Liushu Zheng’e). Also, chǒu resembles a newborn child raising its hands.