Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 形 originally depicted a pattern or form made by casting in a mold. It combines 开 (meaning 'to open' or 'spread out') with 彡 (representing 'decoration' or 'pattern'). In ancient China, it evolved to mean 'shape,' 'form,' or 'appearance,' reflecting the idea of a visible pattern or structure. Over time, it broadened to include abstract forms and the concept of manifestation. Arrived in Japan: The character 形 was likely introduced to Japan during the early cultural exchanges with China, around the 5th to 6th centuries CE, when the Japanese adopted Chinese writing and Confucian classics. It became part of the Japanese kanji system and is used in words like 形 (katachi, 'shape') and 形式 (keishiki, 'form' or 'format').