The Calligrapher — Lù Jiǎnzhī 陆柬之

Tang calligrapher and nephew of Yu Shinan; his running-script 'Essay on Literature' survives

Tang calligrapher (), master of running script — known for 《文赋》. Tang dynasty

Cultural Story

Rare in speech, the character 蹁 appears almost only doubled as 蹁跹, a word for the light, swaying turn of a dancer's body. It joins the foot radical with a sound that itself seems to skip, and the pairing evokes a sleeve drifting, a heel lifting without ever quite landing. In old descriptions of palace entertainments, 蹁跹 is grace half in motion, never planted.

Common words & phrases

• 蹁跹 whirling · dancing lightly
• 蹁蹮 flitting · dancing

Read the story behind the character

On the community stage a child in a red costume 蹁跹 through a folk dance, her feet barely touching the boards as the ribbon in her hand sweeps an arc. The audience does not call it by this ancient word, but the lightness is the same the old poets meant. Afterward she 蹁蹮 across the linoleum backstage, still caught in the music, still dancing for no one.