Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 殿 originally depicted a hand striking something with a weapon on top of a foundation, suggesting the meaning of 'strike' or 'attack.' Over time, its meaning shifted dramatically to represent 'palace,' 'hall,' or 'mansion'—the residence of nobility where judgments or punishments might be administered. It later became an honorific suffix in Japanese (e.g., -どの, -dono) to show respect. The character's structure evolved from more pictographic forms in ancient scripts to the standardized modern form, with the 殳 (weapon/hand action) component remaining as a key radical. Arrived in Japan: The character 殿 likely arrived in Japan by the 5th century CE, during the period when the Japanese writing system was being developed through the introduction of Chinese characters (kanji) via Korean peninsular scholars and Chinese texts such as the Confucian classics.