化

Stroke order

化 (Kangxi radical 21, 匕+2, 4 strokes, cangjie input 人心 (OP), four-corner 2421₀, composition ⿰亻𠤎(GV) or ⿰亻匕(HTJK))

• 𪜐, 吪, 𪢼, 沎, 杹, 𤆷, 𥄒, 𬖒, 𬟹, 𬍕, 訛(讹), 𧿕, 鈋(𨱂), 靴, 魤, 𩑭, 𩲏, 𠇃, 𠕿, 炛, 花, 𠯒, 貨(货), 囮
• 华 (Simplified from 華)

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 152, character 20
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 2572
• Dae Jaweon: page 342, character 4
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 109, character 4
• Unihan data for U+5316

Historical forms of the character 化
Shang	Western Zhou	Warring States	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) of two 人 (“person”), one upright (亻) and one upside down (𠤎) — reversal; change. Shuowen also considers 𠤎 to be a phonetic component.

Compare 并, 比, 卬, 尼 and 北.

化

1. to change; to transform
2. to become; to turn into
3. ^† to die
4. to melt

   把雪化掉  ―  bǎ xuě huàdiào  ―  make snow melt

5. to dissolve
6. Suffix denoting "change into ...". Akin to English -ize and -ization.

   民主化  ―  mínzhǔhuà  ―  democratize

7. (chemistry) Affix denoting combination.

   氧化鈣／氧化钙  ―  yǎnghuàgài  ―  calcium oxide

   氫氧化鈉／氢氧化钠  ―  qīngyǎnghuànà  ―  sodium hydroxide

8. Short for 教化 (jiàohuà, “enlightenment; cultivation”).
9. (in compounds) Short for 化學／化学 (huàxué, “chemistry”).

   日化  ―  rìhuà  ―  household chemicals

   化工  ―  huàgōng  ―  chemical industry

10. to burn (clarification of this definition is needed)

    化寶／化宝  ―  huàbǎo  ―  to burn offerings

11. (Cantonese) open-minded; enlightened

    睇化 [Cantonese]  ―  tai² faa³ [Jyutping]  ―  to see things in an open-minded manner

    教極都唔化／教极都唔化 [Cantonese]  ―  gaau³ gik⁶ dou¹ m⁴ faa³ [Jyutping]  ―  to teach someone repeatedly but still does not become enlightened

(Third grade kyōiku kanji)

• Go-on: け (ke, Jōyō)
• Kan-on: か (ka, Jōyō)^{←くわ (kwa, historical)}
• Kun: ばける (bakeru, 化ける, Jōyō)、ばかす (bakasu, 化かす, Jōyō)、かえる (kaeru, 化える)、かわる (kawaru, 化わる)、ふける (fukeru, 化ける)

From Middle Chinese 化 (MC xwaeH).

• IPA^(key): [ka̠]

化(か) • (ka) ^{←くわ (kwa)?}

1. to change; to take the form of
2. to influence

化(か) • (-ka) ^{←くわ (-kwa)?}

1. -ization, -ification; action of making something that way

From Middle Chinese 化 (MC xwaeH).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ɸwa̠(ː)]
• Phonetic hangul: [화(ː)]
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

化

Wikisource

化 (eumhun 될 화 (doel hwa))

1. hanja form^? of 화 (“to be; to become”) [affix]
2. hanja form^? of 화 (“-ization; -ification”) [suffix]

• 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典. [2]

化: Hán Việt readings: hóa/hoá^[1][2][3], góa/goá^[1]
化: Nôm readings: Huế^[1]

1. chữ Hán form of hoá (“to transform; to change into; to become”).
2. Nôm form of Huế (“Huế City”).