分
ぶ · bu · JLPT N3 · noun
part
🔪🍰 分 = 八 (split apart) + 刀 (knife): a knife splits things into parts
The top 八 is an old sign for dividing, and 刀 underneath is a knife. Read ぶ, 分 means a share or one-tenth part: 五分五分 (gobu-gobu) is a 50-50 split, like a cake cut into equal halves.
分 — knife 刀 + eight 八 (split apart)
分 originally depicted a knife (刀) cutting something into two parts, shown by 八 above (which itself meant 'divide'). The core sense is 'to divide' or 'split', from which extended meanings like 'portion', 'minute', and 'part' developed. Pronounced fèn, it carries the sense of an allotted share.
ぶん · bun · JLPT N3 · noun
part
🔪🍞 分 = 八 (split apart) + 刀 (knife); bun: cut the bun into parts
The top of 分 is 八, an old sign for two things pulling apart. The bottom is 刀, a knife. A knife splitting something gives you parts. The reading bun is also a hook: you slice a bun into segments.
分 — knife 刀 + eight 八 (split apart)
分 originally depicted a knife (刀) cutting something into two parts, shown by 八 above (which itself meant 'divide'). The core sense is 'to divide' or 'split', from which extended meanings like 'portion', 'minute', and 'part' developed. Pronounced fèn, it carries the sense of an allotted share.