地区
dìqū · HSK 3
area
🗺️ 地 (earth) + 区 (zone) = area or region of land
地 means earth or ground; 区 means zone, district, or division. Together 地区 literally reads as earth-zone, used for a geographic region, district, or area.
地 — earth 土 + 也 (phonetic)
地 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left component 土 means 'earth' or 'soil' and gives the meaning, while 也 on the right hints at the pronunciation. Originally referring to the ground or land, it broadened to mean 'place,' 'region,' and 'territory.'
区 — enclosure 匚 + 品 (items)
Originally a pictograph of items (品) hidden inside a container (匚), meaning to store or conceal. The sense extended to a bounded space, then to an administrative district or area. As a surname read Ōu, it preserves the older 'hidden/enclosed' nuance.