dàn
dawn
Depicts the sun (日) rising above the horizon (一) at dawn. In Oracle script the bottom component was the phonetic 丁, which was later reanalyzed as the earth or a horizon.
Oracle script
Bronze script
Seal script
Clerical script
Regular script
dàn
dawn; morning; day; daybreak; dan, female roles in Chinese opera (traditionally played by specialized male actors)
季旭昇《說文新證》p.539