明け方
あけがた · akegata · JLPT N2 · noun
dawn
🐓 明け (light breaks) + 方 (time of) = the time when light breaks
明け comes from 明ける, to grow light or to open, and 明 means bright. 方 marks a rough time, as in 夕方 (evening). Sound hook: a-KE-ga-ta, a rooster cackling at daybreak.
方 — pictograph of a plow or two boats joined side by side
方 originated as a pictograph, traditionally interpreted as a plow handle or two boats lashed together. From the idea of paired boats it extended to mean 'side by side,' then 'square,' 'direction,' and 'region.' It was later borrowed for the abstract sense of 'method' or 'way.'