国立
こくりつ · kokuritsu · JLPT N2 · na-adj
national
🏛️ 国立 = country + stand up: a nation standing on its own, so national
国 means country and 立 means to stand or establish. A national thing is one a country sets up and stands behind. Kokuritsu sounds like 'coke-rit-sue'.
国 — enclosure 囗 + jade 玉
国 is a simplified form of 國. The outer 囗 represents borders or an enclosed territory, while the inner 玉 (jade) suggests a treasured realm ruled by a sovereign. The traditional 國 used 或 inside, depicting a guarded region with a weapon, later simplified by replacing it with 玉.
立 — person standing on ground (大 over 一)
Pictograph of a person standing with arms outstretched on the ground line below. The original oracle bone form clearly shows a frontal human figure planted on the earth. The core meaning 'to stand' extended to 'establish, set up, erect.'