半島
はんとう · hantou · JLPT N2 · noun
peninsula
🏝️ 半島 = half + island: land that is half surrounded by sea, still attached to the mainland
半 (hán) means half and 島 (tǒu/tō) means island. A peninsula is a half-island: land jutting into water but still joined to the continent.
半 — 八 (split) + 牛 (ox/cow)
半 originally depicted an ox (牛) being divided in two, shown by the splitting strokes 八 on top. The image of cleaving an ox down the middle gave rise to the meaning 'half' or 'to divide into halves'. The modern sense of 'half' or 'partial' comes directly from this ancient act of splitting.