Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 衣 depicts a garment with sleeves and a front opening. In its earliest oracle bone script form, it resembled a kimono-style robe with clear sleeves and a crossed collar. The character evolved through bronze script and seal script, gradually simplifying while maintaining the essential shape of a garment. 衣 originally meant 'clothing' or 'garment' and serves as a radical in many characters related to clothing, such as 袍 (robe), 衫 (shirt), and 裁 (to cut out clothing). Arrived in Japan: The character 衣 arrived in Japan during the Yayoi period (300 BCE - 300 CE) through cultural exchange with China, and was systematically introduced along with other Chinese characters during the 5th-6th centuries CE when Buddhist scriptures and Chinese classics were brought to Japan by scholars and monks.