How to Write 岣 (gǒu) — Meaning “Gou (used in place names)”

Picture a mountain (山) with a curved line like a hook (句) at its summit, forming a unique peak called Goulou. The component 句 looks like a hook or a sentence, so you can remember "a mountain with a hook-shaped sentence on top." This visual link helps you recall both the sound and the meaning as a place name.

Write the radical 山 first, keeping it narrow and slightly smaller than the right side. Then write 句: start with the outer wrapper 勹 (a curved stroke covering the top and left), followed by 口 (a square box). A common mistake is making the 山 too wide or misaligning the 句, so keep the character balanced with 山 on the left and 句 filling the rest.

岣 (gǒu) is only used in the proper noun Goulou (a peak and a stele), while 屹 (yì) means "towering" or "standing tall" and 屺 (qǐ) refers to a barren hill without plants. Visually, 屹 has 乞 on the right and 屺 has 己, whereas 岣 has 句. Unlike the other two, 岣 has no general meaning and appears only in specific place names.

岣 appears almost exclusively in the place name 岣嵝 (Goulou), which is a peak of Mount Heng in Hunan province. It is also part of 岣嵝碑 (Goulou Stele), a famous ancient stone inscription with mysterious characters. You will not encounter 岣 in daily conversation or general writing; it is limited to historical and geographical contexts.

Common words containing 岣 include: 岣嵝 (gǒu lǒu) — Goulou (a peak of Mount Heng); 岣嵝峰 (gǒu lǒu fēng) — Goulou Peak; 岣嵝碑 (gǒu lǒu bēi) — The Goulou Stele.