文学
ぶんがく · bungaku · JLPT N4 · noun
literature
📚 文学 = writing (文) + study (学): the study of writing
文 (bun) means writing or text, as in 文化 culture and 文法 grammar. 学 (gaku) means study, as in 大学 university and 科学 science. Many academic fields end in 学, so bungaku is literally the writing-field: literature.
文 — pictograph of crossed lines on a chest
文 originally depicted a person with patterns or tattoos drawn on the chest, shown as crossed or interwoven lines. From this image of decorative markings, it came to mean 'pattern,' then 'writing,' 'script,' and 'literature' or 'culture.' The modern senses all trace back to the idea of meaningful marks.
学 — hands 𦥑 + roof 冖 + child 子
Originally 學, depicting two hands manipulating something (often interpreted as counting rods or the 爻 trigram symbols) under a roof, with a child 子 below — a child learning under instruction. The simplified form 学 replaces the top with a stylized 龸. Core meaning has always been 'to study, learn'.