Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 嫁 (jià) depicts a woman 女 beside a house 家, representing a woman moving to her husband's household in marriage. In ancient China, this character embodied the traditional concept of marriage where the bride 'marries out' to join her husband's family. The composition powerfully conveys the social transition of a woman from her natal home to establishing a new household through marriage. Arrived in Japan: The character 嫁 arrived in Japan during the 5th-6th centuries CE along with the broader introduction of Chinese writing system (kanji) through cultural exchange with Korea and China. It was formally adopted into the Japanese writing system and appears in early Japanese texts like the Man'yōshū (8th century), taking on the Japanese readings 'yome' (bride) and 'totsu' (to marry).