阎 (yán) is a Chinese character meaning “(originally) the gate of a village lane”. It is written from 门 (door; gate) and 臽 (small pit (said to show a person above a pit)), one enclosing the other, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “King Yama; a surname”
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Structure
门 + 臽
Enclosing structure
Structure from: 说文解字：閻，里中門也。从門臽聲。现代字形拆分（⿵门臽）已对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：门 3 画 + 臽 8 画 = 11 画
Memory aid
Right inside the gate (门) lies a small pit (臽) — picture it as the gateway down to the underworld, guarded by 阎王, King Yama.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 阎王yán wángKing Yama, ruler of the underworld; (fig.) a cruel, fearsome person阎 = yán
- 阎罗yán luóYama, king of the underworld (short for 阎罗王)阎 = yán
Go deeper
All readings
King Yama; a surname
(originally) the gate of a village lane; used in 阎王 / 阎罗 King Yama, ruler of the underworld; a surname
原指里巷的门。现多用于「阎王、阎罗」（传说中管地狱的神），也用作姓。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 阎王yán wángKing Yama, ruler of the underworld; (fig.) a cruel, fearsome person阎 = yán
- 阎罗yán luóYama, king of the underworld (short for 阎罗王)阎 = yán
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 阎 mean?
阎 (yán) means (originally) the gate of a village lane; used in 阎王 / 阎罗 King Yama, ruler of the underworld; a surname.
How do you pronounce 阎?
It is pronounced yán.
What parts is 阎 made of?
门 (door; gate) and 臽 (small pit (said to show a person above a pit)), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字：閻，里中門也。从門臽聲。现代字形拆分（⿵门臽）已对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：门 3 画 + 臽 8 画 = 11 画. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 阎 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 阎?
门. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 阎?
Common ones are 阎王 and 阎罗. The reading of 阎 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.