占 - DIVINE What the Cracks Want To Say

Readings & Meanings:

うらな（う）

セン

し（める）

to divine, divination, to occupy/hold a seat

Common Usage:

占領軍

占める

占い師

独占

Examples:

アメリカ占領軍の影響で沖縄の人はＳＰＡＭを食べるようになった。

その会社はアルミニウム鋼板の生産にかけては世界一のシェアを占めている。

占い師によると今年は東北東の方角が吉だという。

ＣＮＮはその大統領選の候補者に独占インタビューをした。

Translations:

Okinawans came to like SPAM, it seems, from the influence of the American occupation.

That company holds the largest share of aluminum sheeting production in the world.

The fortune teller says that, this year, good luck will come from east-northeast.

CNN broadcast its exclusive interview with the presidential candidate.

Bonus:

占 is kind of a radical in its own right, but let's just break it down for fun. 卜 means divination. When I saw this kanji, I first thought, "ト?" but it's not the katakana. My next thought was "Divining rod?" and that was a good guess, but no. 卜 is a pictograph of a crack in a bone or skull that was burned in the seer's rites. It's on top of 口. Therefore, telling the future.

Divination was used as it was in Greece: you should only pick a piece of land if the divination for that land was good. Thereby 占 gained the meaning of "to occupy."

Let's remember this kanji through another kanji: 店. みせ is 占 framed in a roof and a wall. Therefore, the shop occupies a certain space to do business in.

References:

http://www.kanjinetworks.com/tnetwork/TAM.html#TAM03
http://www.thejapanesepage.com/kanji/kanji/e.htm