送り仮名
おくりがな · okurigana · JLPT N2 · noun
part of word written in kana
送り仮名 = send-off + kana: the kana that trails after the kanji
送り (okuri) means sending or seeing someone off, and 仮名 (kana) is the syllabary. Okurigana are the kana that follow a kanji, like the る in 送る, and they show its ending and how it is read.
送 — 辶 (walk) + 关 (simplified from 灷, fire/torch)
Originally depicted hands holding a torch to escort someone on a journey, combined with the 'walk' radical 辶. The right side 关 is a simplification of an older form showing fire being carried. The core meaning evolved from 'escort/see off' to the broader sense of 'send' or 'give as a gift.'
名 — evening 夕 + mouth 口
A compound ideograph: in the dark of evening (夕), one cannot recognize others by sight, so the mouth (口) calls out a name to identify oneself. The original sense of 'name' broadened to include reputation, fame, and a measure word for people.