Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 夜 (yè) meaning 'night' has an interesting evolution. In oracle bone script, it depicted a person with a moon, representing the nighttime. The Liushutong form shows the transitional seal script version with 夕 (evening) as a component combined with phonetic elements. The modern form 夜 evolved through bronze script and seal script, eventually stabilizing during the Han dynasty. The character represents the concept of night as the time when the moon dominates the sky and people rest. Arrived in Japan: The character 夜 arrived in Japan during the 5th-6th centuries CE along with the broader introduction of Chinese writing system (kanji) through Korean scribes and Buddhist texts. It was adopted into Japanese as 'yo' or 'yoru' and appears in early Japanese texts like the Man'yōshū (8th century).