原典
げんてん · genten · JLPT N1 · noun
master
📜 原 (gen) origin + 典 (ten) classic text = the original source text
原典 is a primary source text, the earliest version of a work. 典 also appears in 辞典 (jiten, dictionary), a book of reference words.
原 — cliff 厂 + spring 泉 (white 白 + water 水)
Originally a pictograph showing a spring of water flowing out from beneath a cliff, depicting the source of a stream. From this concrete image of a water source, the meaning extended to 'origin,' 'source,' and 'original.' A separate character 源 was later created with the water radical 氵 to keep the literal 'spring' sense.