男の子
おとこのこ · otokonoko · JLPT N5 · expression
boy
👦 男の子 = man/male (otoko) + の (of) + child (ko): a male child
Otoko means man or male, no is the linking particle, and ko means child. Swap otoko for onna (woman) and you get onnanoko, girl. Learn the pair together: otoko-no-ko, onna-no-ko.
男 — field 田 + strength/plow 力
男 is a compound ideograph combining 田 (field) above 力 (strength, originally a picture of a plow). It depicted the one who works the fields with a plow, i.e. a male laborer, and by extension came to mean 'man' or 'male' in general.
子 — pictograph of a baby/child with arms out
子 began as a pictograph of a swaddled infant with a large head and outstretched arms, originally meaning 'baby' or 'child.' From there it broadened to 'son,' 'offspring,' and a respectful suffix for masters like 孔子 (Confucius). It also became one of the twelve earthly branches.