wisdom, knowledge

智 is composed of 知 (know, understand) and 曰 (say, speak). 知 refers to knowledge or learning, while 曰 means speaking. 智 represents imparting knowledge to others through speech, whereby those who gain knowledge become wise. Additionally, early forms of 智 included the character 子 (child), indicating the transmission of knowledge to children. As learning was not limited to children, 子 was later removed.