反響
はんきょう · hankyou · JLPT N1 · noun
echo
📢 反 = back, 響 = sound: the sound that bounces back to you
The character 響 (sound) also appears in 音響 (sound system) and 交響曲 (symphony). Adding 反 (back) gives sound returning, which is also used for repercussions, like public reactions to news.
反 — hand 又 under cliff 厂
Originally a pictograph of a hand (又) turning something over against a cliff or slope (厂), depicting the action of flipping or reversing. From this came the core meaning 'to turn over,' which extended to 'opposite,' 'contrary,' and 'rebel against.' The character is purely semantic, with no phonetic component.