Si Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Water (shuǐ) Entry: Zhou Kangxi strokes: 10 Page 622, Entry 09 Pronounced zhou. According to the Explanation of Scripts and Signs (Shuowen Jiezi), it refers to a small piece of land within water. According to the Literary Expositor (Erya), in the section regarding water, a place within water that is habitable is called a zhou. Furthermore, according to the Explaining Names (Shiming), it means to gather. It is a place where humans, birds, beasts, and other living creatures gather and dwell. According to the Book of Odes (Shijing), in the Zhou Nan section: In the islet of the river. Also Lingzhou, which was a county name during the Han dynasty, subordinate to Beidi Commandery. According to the Supplement to Rhymes (Yunbu), it rhymes with zhuan, pronounced zhu. In the Rhapsody on the Capital of Lu (Lu Du Fu) by Liu Zhen: In the twice-seven days of the white autumn, the Milky Way points toward the corner. Gauze curtains fill the crossings, red tents cover the islet. According to the Explanation of Scripts and Signs (Shuowen Jiezi), it was originally written as the character for state or province (zhou), and later people added the water radical to distinguish it from the character used for administrative states and counties.