Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 眉 (méi) originally depicted an eye with prominent eyebrows above it in oracle bone script. This pictograph evolved through bronze script and seal script, where the eyebrow element became more stylized and separated from the eye component. In modern form, the top part represents the eyebrows while the bottom 目 means 'eye.' The character means 'eyebrow' and by extension conveys meanings related to the upper margin or edge of things, as in 眉批 (marginal notes) or 书眉 (top margin of a page). Arrived in Japan: The character 眉 arrived in Japan during the Yayoi period or early Kofun period (approximately 3rd-5th century CE) along with other Chinese characters, likely through Korean peninsula intermediaries. It was systematically introduced during the broader cultural transmission that brought Chinese writing to Japan, preceding the more formal adoption of Chinese characters in the Asuka period (6th-7th century CE).