山路
shānlù · HSK 7
road
⛰️🥾 山 (mountain) + 路 (road) = mountain road
Two parts you already know: 山 shān is mountain, 路 lù is road or path. Stack them and you get the road that climbs a mountain — a mountain trail or pass.
山 — pictograph of three mountain peaks
山 is one of the oldest pictographs in Chinese, originally drawn in oracle bone script as three pointed peaks rising from a baseline. The form was simplified over time into the modern three vertical strokes on a base. Its meaning has stayed remarkably stable: 'mountain' or 'hill'.
路 — foot 足 + each 各 (phonetic)
路 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The foot radical 足 on the left signals meaning related to walking or travel, while 各 on the right hints at the ancient pronunciation. Originally referring to a road traveled on foot, it broadened to mean 'road, path, route' in general.