不管
bùguǎn · HSK 4
no matter
不 = not + 管 = manage/control; together: not managing it = regardless
不 (bù) means 'not' and 管 (guǎn) means 'to manage' or 'control'. So 不管 literally reads as 'not managing/controlling' — i.e. setting aside control over the outcome, hence 'no matter' or 'regardless of'.
不 — single pictograph; bird flying upward
Originally a pictograph in oracle bone script, traditionally interpreted as a bird flying up toward the sky and unable to come down, suggesting negation or refusal. Over time it became the standard negation word in Chinese, used before verbs and adjectives to mean 'not'.
管 — bamboo radical 竹 + official 官 (phonetic)
Originally a pictograph of a bamboo tube or pipe, written with the bamboo radical 竹 on top. The lower component 官 supplies the sound. From 'bamboo pipe' it extended to 'tube,' then to 'manage' or 'control' — since pipes channel and regulate flow, the meaning shifted toward administration.