0050 議

議

This complex character means ‘deliberation, proposal, consult, discuss.’ It’s pronounced GI in Japanese and yì in Chinese.

我

This part of the character means ‘self, my, me, we, our, one’s own.’ The left side and right side of it now look different, but originally they represented two weapons in conflict:

.

Did they mean to say that the self is always in conflict? With itself? With others? Unknown.

This part of the character

⺷ or 羊

signifies a sheep or goat. Apparently because of the gentleness of lambs, Wieger says it also meant ‘sweetness, peace, harmony’. However, it does not show that definition in current Japanese or Chinese dictionaries.

義  

The entire right side of today’s character thus represents ‘harmony, good understanding, peace restored after a conflict.’ Adding the left-hand part

言

which means ‘words, speech, speak,’ leads to the overall meaning:  ‘deliberation, proposal, consult, discuss.’