How to Write 杭 (háng) — Meaning “Hangzhou (abbreviation); to cross a river”

Picture a wooden bridge (木) that is built very high (亢) so people can cross a wide river — this represents the meaning "to cross a river." Alternatively, think of the famous city Hangzhou (杭州), where you might use such a bridge to cross the beautiful West Lake.

First write the left radical 木: vertical stroke straight and long, then the diagonal strokes 丿 and ㇏ balanced. Then write the right part 亢: start with a dot at the top, a short horizontal stroke, a vertical hook, then a left-falling stroke and a right-falling stroke. Keep the right part narrow so the whole character looks balanced.

朱 (zhū, meaning "red") has the wood radical with a horizontal stroke through the middle, not 亢 on the right. 朴 (pǔ, meaning "simple") has the wood radical with 卜 (bǔ) on the right, which looks like a vertical line with a tiny dot. In contrast, 杭 has the right component 亢 which includes a dot, a horizontal stroke, a hook, and two diagonal strokes.

杭 is most commonly used as an abbreviation for the city Hangzhou, especially in words like 杭州 (Hangzhou) and 杭帮菜 (Hangzhou cuisine). It also appears in the phrase 苏杭 (Sū Háng, Suzhou and Hangzhou), a famous pairing of two beautiful cities. Outside of place names, this character is rarely used alone.

Common words containing 杭 include: 杭州 (háng zhōu) — Hangzhou (a city in China); 杭帮菜 (háng bāng cài) — Hangzhou cuisine; 苏杭 (sū háng) — Suzhou and Hangzhou.