公務員
こうむいん · koumuin · JLPT N4 · noun
worker
🏛️ 公務員 = public + duty + member: a member on public duty
公 (kou) means public, 務 (mu) means duty or task, 員 (in) means member or staff. The same 員 ends 会社員 (company employee) and 店員 (shop clerk), so 公務 + 員 reads as the staff member who does public duties.
公 — eight 八 + private 厶
Originally an ideograph showing 八 (to divide) over 厶 (private/self), depicting the act of splitting away from selfish interest. The combination came to mean 'public' or 'fair,' the opposite of private. It later extended to senses like 'duke,' 'lord,' and 'grandfather.'