那里
nàlǐ · HSK 1
that place
📍 那 (that) + 里 (inside/place) = that place
那 means 'that' and 里 means 'inside' or a unit of place; together 那里 literally points to 'that inside-place', i.e. 'there'. Pair with 这里 (zhèlǐ, 'here') as the near/far counterpart.
那 — 邑 radical 阝(right) + 冄 phonetic
Originally referred to a place name in ancient China, with the right-side 阝 (city/region radical) indicating a settlement and 冄 providing the sound. Over time it lost its geographic meaning and was borrowed as a demonstrative pronoun meaning 'that' or 'those'.
里 — 田 (field) + 土 (earth)
Originally a pictograph combining 田 (field) and 土 (earth), depicting cultivated land where people lived. It came to mean 'village' or 'hometown,' and by extension a unit of distance (about 500 meters). The 'inside' meaning is borrowed; that sense was traditionally written 裏 or 裡.