The kanji 峡 primarily represents a "gorge," "ravine," or "glen." It describes a narrow passage of land between mountains, often with steep sides and a stream or river running through it. The core meaning focuses on a confined, valley-like geographical feature.

・On-yomi (音読み): キョウ (kyō) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): たに (tani) - this reading is less common.

⚫︎峡谷 (kyōkoku) Translation: gorge, canyon ⚫︎峡間 (kyōkan) Translation: valley, gap, ravine ⚫︎武蔵野峡 (Musashino-kyō) Translation: Musashino Gorge (This is a place name.)

The kanji 峡 is a 形声文字 (keisei moji), a phono-semantic compound character. ⚫︎ It is composed of two parts: ⚫︎ The left radical, 山 (yama), meaning "mountain," indicates the semantic component, hinting at the mountainous environment. ⚫︎ The right side, 夾 (kyō), provides the phonetic component, indicating the pronunciation and lending a sense of "to clamp" or "to hold together," describing the close proximity of the mountain sides. ⚫︎ This combination visually and conceptually represents a narrow valley or gorge formed by mountains.