自称
zìchēng · HSK 7
claim to be
🗣️ 自 = self + 称 = to call/name; to call yourself something = claim to be
自 means self and 称 means to call or name. Stack them and you get naming yourself as something, which is the act of professing or claiming to be that thing, often without outside proof.
自 — pictograph of a nose
自 originally depicted a human nose, shown frontally with the bridge and nostrils. Ancient Chinese pointed to their own nose to mean 'me,' so 自 shifted to mean 'self' or 'oneself.' A new character 鼻 was later created to carry the original 'nose' meaning.
称 — grain 禾 + 尔 (phonetic)
称 is a semantic-phonetic compound: the grain radical 禾 on the left points to weighing grain on a balance, while 尔 hints at the sound. It originally meant 'to weigh' on a steelyard, then extended to 'to state the weight of,' and finally to general senses like 'to call,' 'to name,' or 'title.'