Do 自 and 起 work together here?
自...起 since

It is correct, &quot;自???起&quot; means &quot;Since ???&quot;

自 = from

起 = begin



&quot;(自) ??? (起)&quot; = &quot;(begin from) ???&quot; = &quot;(Since)???&quot;
e.g.&quot;自七月起禁止捕魚&quot; (Ban on fishing since July)

Other common structures with 自:

&quot;自(from) ??? 以來(thereafter)&quot; = &quot;since ???&quot;
e.g. 自美國立國以來 (Since the founding of the United States thereafter)
&quot;自 (from) ??? 以後/之後 (after)&quot; = &quot;since ???&quot;
e.g. 自美國立國以後 (Since after the founding of the United States)