原則
げんそく · gensoku · JLPT N1 · noun
principle
📜 原 (origin) + 則 (rule): a basic rule that other rules come from
原 means origin or source and 則 means rule or standard. Together they name the foundational rule that other rules are derived from.
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.