視野

しや · shiya · JLPT N1 · noun

visual field

🔭 視 (sight) + 野 (field) = your field of sight; shiya sounds like see ya.

The 'outlook' sense extends the literal meaning: how far your perspective reaches. 野 means open wild land or plain, so 視野 is the open ground your sight covers.

野 — 里 (village) + 予 (phonetic)
Originally written 埜 (forest 林 over earth 土), depicting wild land beyond cultivated fields. The modern form 野 combines 里 (village/settled land) with 予 as a phonetic component, keeping the meaning of open country, wilderness, or untamed.

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