Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 事 (shì) evolved from ancient pictographs depicting a hand holding a writing brush over a table, symbolizing recording events or handling affairs. In oracle bone script, it resembled 史 (historian) with an additional element, representing 'affairs' or 'matters'. Through bronze script and small seal script, it simplified into its modern form, maintaining the meaning of 'event', 'matter', 'business', or 'to serve'. It's closely related to 使 (to send) and 吏 (official), all sharing the concept of handling duties. Arrived in Japan: The character 事 arrived in Japan during the 5th-6th centuries CE, primarily through the introduction of Chinese writing systems via Korean peninsula. It was adopted into Japanese as 'koto' (thing/matter) and appears in early Japanese texts like the Kojiki (712 CE) and Manyoshu (8th century), becoming fundamental in Japanese vocabulary for describing events, affairs, and circumstances.