～学部
～がくぶ · ～gakubu · JLPT N4 · noun
university
🎓🏫 学部 = study (学) + section (部): the study-section of a university
学 (gaku) means learning, as in 学生 student and 大学 university. 部 (bu) means a section or division, as in 部分 part. Attached after a field name it names that faculty: 文学部 = literature faculty, 工学部 = engineering faculty.
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'.
部 — 阝(邑) right + 咅 phonetic
The right-side 阝 derives from 邑 (city/settlement), giving the meaning of a region, district, or administrative division. The left side 咅 supplies the sound. Originally referring to a settlement, the meaning broadened to 'part,' 'section,' or 'ministry.'