Yin and yang whose fusion in physical matter brings the phenomenal world into being. Also "attrib". or as "adj"., and "transf". Cf. yang. b. "Comb"., as yin-yang, the combination or fusion of the two cosmic forces; freq. attrib., esp. as yin-yang symbol, a circle divided by an S-shaped line into a dark and a light segment, representing respectively "yin" and "yang", each containing a 'seed' of the other. yang (jæŋ) Also Yang. [Chinese "yáng" yang, sun, positive, male genitals.] a. In Chinese philosophy, the masculine or positive principle (characterized by light, warmth, dryness, activity, etc.) of the two opposing cosmic forces into which
Yin and yang "to shelter; shade", and 陽 or 阳 "sunny" is always pronounced with rising second tone "yáng". Sinologists and historical linguists have reconstructed Middle Chinese pronunciations from data in the (7th century CE) "Qieyun" rhyme dictionary and later rhyme tables, which was subsequently used to reconstruct Old Chinese phonology from rhymes in the (11th-7th centuries BCE) "Shijing" and phonological components of Chinese characters. Reconstructions of Old Chinese have illuminated the etymology of modern Chinese words. Compare these Middle Chinese and Old Chinese (with asterisk) reconstructions of "yīn" 陰 and "yáng" 陽: Schuessler gives probable Sino-Tibetan etymologies for both Chinese words. "Yin"