mantis
蟷 refers specifically to the praying mantis, an insect known for its folded forelegs.
蟷 combines the insect radical 虫 with the phonetic component 當 (トウ), which indicates the reading. The character was created to name the mantis.
The insect radical 虫 on the left signals a bug, and the right side 當 looks like a mantis with its folded arms and segmented body. Picture a mantis perched on a leaf, its shape matching the character.
For トウ, imagine a mantis tapping its toe on a leaf: toe -> トウ, and the insect waits patiently.
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