The kanji 揚 primarily conveys the idea of "raising," "lifting," "hoisting," or "to elevate." It implies moving something upwards, often from a lower position to a higher one. This can relate to physical actions, like lifting an object, or more abstract concepts like raising one's voice. The core concept is always about ascension or bringing something up.

・On-yomi (音読み): ヨウ (yō) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): あ（げる） (a(geru)) – to raise, あ（がる） (a(garu)) – to be raised

⚫︎ 揚げる (ageru) Translation: To raise, to lift, to fry (as in food) ⚫︎ 登場 (tōjō) Translation: Appearance (on stage, etc.), coming on stage, entering ⚫︎ 高揚 (kōyō) Translation: Excitement, elation, elation, exhilaration

The kanji 揚 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字). The semantic component is the radical 手 (て, te), meaning "hand," which provides the meaning element of action or doing. The phonetic component is 昜 (よう, yō), which relates to "bright" or "sun" and contributes the sound. Originally, the character depicted a hand lifting something. Over time, it developed to encompass actions like raising, lifting, and elevating in various contexts.