人权

• Pinyin: rén quán
• Hanzi breakdown: 人 = pictograph of a standing person; 权 = 木 (wood) + 雚 (phonetic) — rights, power

Meaning

Human rights. The basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person.

A formal term used in legal, political, and academic contexts. Includes concepts like 基本人权 (basic human rights), 人权保障 (human rights protection), and 人权组织 (human rights organization). The term is commonly seen in discussions of international relations, law, and social issues.

Examples

1. 联合国致力于在全球范围内推动人权保护。 The United Nations is committed to promoting human rights protection worldwide.
2. 每个人生来就享有基本人权，这是不可剥夺的。 Everyone is born with basic human rights — these are inalienable.
3. 这位律师多年来一直从事人权方面的法律工作。 This lawyer has been working on human rights legal cases for many years.

Usage Guide

Context: law, politics, international relations

Tone: serious

Do Say

• 人权必须得到尊重。(Human rights must be respected.)
• 这是一个人权问题。(This is a human rights issue.)

Don't Say

• 不要将'人权'用于日常琐事 (Don't use 人权 for trivial daily matters — it's a formal term for fundamental rights, not casual complaints)

Origin & History

Compound of 人 (person, human) and 权 (rights). A modern term derived from the Western concept of 'human rights,' introduced to Chinese during the late Qing dynasty.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal