All pencils were originally made from lead, before we realized that was a really stupid thing to do.

They probably just didn't change the name, like us.

gibosi Wrote:Well.. It is not my favorite Kanji word, but I have been wondering recently about 鉛筆。。。 a "lead pencil"?? But it is really a graphite/carbon pencil. So, did the English "lead pencil" come from 鉛筆? Or the other way around?

Looking up words using 鉛 in wwwjdic, it looks like it means more than just "lead". It's also used in words like "zinc", "graphite", and some obscure physical materials I've never heard of.. and it also seems to be used in some words having to do with perpendicularness/verticalness.

Great thread topic. There are many kanji that are just cool to look at, but among my hand's favorites are, for some reason, 高 and 我. There are more, but I can't think of them right now, and even if I browse through kanji looking for them, they don't pop out at me. I have to write them, and if it's a good one, I just feel some substance there, some 手応え, like the 歯応え of a piece of mochi between my teeth, that makes my hand say "damn, that's a fine kanji". If I come across any more I'll add them.