How to Write 笪 (dá) — Meaning “bamboo mat”

Imagine a bamboo mat (笪) laid out on the ground at dawn (旦) — you spread it out when the sun just rises. The top part 竹 looks like two bamboo stalks, and the bottom 旦 is like a sun just above the horizon. This visual can help link the shape and meaning.

Write the top radical 竹 first with both sides balanced — left side has a short stroke then a hook, right side is similar but slightly smaller. Then write 旦 below, making sure the horizontal strokes are parallel and the bottom line is slightly wider than the top. A common mistake is making the 旦 too tall, so keep it compact.

竽 (yú) is a bamboo musical instrument, and 竿 (gān) means a bamboo pole or rod. Both share the bamboo radical, but 笪 means a bamboo mat, a flat woven item. Visually, 竽 has 于 below, 竿 has 干 below, and 笪 has 旦 below — the bottom parts give different meanings and pronunciations.

笪 is not a common character today and is mostly found in place names like 笪桥 (Daqiao) or as a surname 姓笪. You might see it in historical texts describing bamboo mats used for sleeping or drying goods. It is not part of the HSK vocabulary, so learners usually encounter it only in specialized contexts.

Common words containing 笪 include: 竹笪 (zhú dá) — Bamboo mat; 笪桥 (dá qiáo) — Daqiao (a place name); 姓笪 (xìng dá) — Surname Da.