中央
ちゅうおう · chuuou · JLPT N3 · noun
central
🎯 中央 = middle (中) + centre (央): the middle of the middle
中 means middle, as in 中国 (the Middle Kingdom). 央 also means centre. Two centre characters together give the very centre. You can see it in 中央駅 (central station) and 中央線 (the Chuo Line), Tokyo's train line that runs through the middle of the city.
中 — vertical stroke 丨 through enclosure 口
Pictograph of a banner or pole piercing the center of a target or territory, depicting the idea of 'middle' or 'center'. The horizontal frame represents boundaries, and the vertical line marks the central axis. The meaning extended from spatial center to 'middle, central, China' (中国, the Middle Kingdom).