保持
bǎochí · HSK 3
maintain
🛡️ 保 = protect + 持 = hold; protect-and-hold = keep/maintain
保 carries the sense of guard/protect (as in 保护), and 持 means to hold or grasp (as in 持有). Together: to hold onto something protectively, i.e. keep or maintain a state.
保 — person 亻 + 呆 (child/protect phonetic)
Originally an ideograph showing an adult carrying a child on the back, meaning to protect or shield. The right side 呆 evolved from a depiction of a swaddled infant. Over time the meaning broadened from 'protect a child' to 'preserve, guarantee, keep safe.'
持 — hand 扌 + temple 寺 (phonetic)
持 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 carries the meaning 'to hold' or 'grasp', while 寺 supplies the sound (it once read close to chí). Originally depicting a hand holding something firmly, it broadened to mean 'maintain', 'support', or 'keep' over time.