年寄
としより · toshiyori · JLPT N3 · noun
people
👴👵 年寄 = years + draw near: someone the years have piled up on
年 means year or age, and 寄 means to draw near or gather, as in 寄る (yoru). The word describes a person the years have gathered on. In sumo, 年寄 is also the formal title of a retired wrestler who becomes a stable elder.
年 — grain 禾 over person 人 (oracle bone)
Originally a pictograph of a person carrying a bundle of harvested grain on their back, representing the yearly grain harvest. Because harvests came once a year, the character shifted from meaning 'harvest' to meaning 'year.' The modern form 年 obscures the original 禾 (grain) + 人 (person) structure.
寄 — roof 宀 + strange 奇 (phonetic)
A semantic-phonetic compound: the roof radical 宀 suggests a dwelling or shelter, while 奇 (qí) supplies the sound, shifted to jì. The original sense was to lodge or stay temporarily under someone's roof, which extended to entrusting, depositing, and eventually sending or mailing things to another's care.