安全
あんぜん · anzen · JLPT N4 · noun
safety
🔒 安全 = peaceful (安) + complete (全): wholly at peace
安 (an) means calm or peaceful, as in 安心 (anshin, relief). 全 (zen) means whole or all, as in 全部 (zenbu, everything). Safety is being completely at ease: nothing left to worry about. Cognate with Chinese ānquán.
安 — roof 宀 + woman 女
A pictographic compound showing a woman 女 under a roof 宀, suggesting safety and tranquility at home. The original meaning 'peaceful, calm, safe' has remained stable since oracle bone script. It later extended to verbs like 'to settle' or 'to install'.
全 — enter 入 on top + jade 玉
Originally written as 入 (enter) over 玉 (jade), depicting a complete, unflawed piece of jade kept in storage. From this image of a perfect jade came the meanings 'whole,' 'complete,' and 'entire.' The top component is sometimes written as 人.