U+8360 "荠" CJK Unified Ideograph-# Unicode Character

U+8360 "荠" CJK Unified Ideograph-# is a Chinese character that traditionally refers to Capsella bursa-pastoris, a small edible herb known as shepherd's purse, commonly used in East Asian cuisine, particularly in soups and dumplings. In modern Chinese, it is most often pronounced as "jì" in this sense, but it can also be read as "qí" when used in the compound "荸荠" (bí qí), meaning water chestnut. The character belongs to the radical for grass (艹) and is composed of 9 strokes, reflecting its botanical association. It appears in classical literature, such as in the ancient poetry collection the Book of Songs (Shijing), where it is praised as a humble yet flavorful wild plant.