Explore each form from the oldest known stage to today.
The character 近 evolved from ancient pictographs showing a person walking followed by an axe (斤), originally conveying the meaning 'to approach' or 'near.' In bronze inscriptions, it depicted someone moving toward a destination with an axe, possibly suggesting approaching a task or place. By the small seal script period, the structure standardized into its modern form with the 辵 (walking) radical and 斤 component. The character's core meaning has remained 'near' or 'close' throughout its evolution, representing both physical proximity and temporal closeness. Arrived in Japan: The character 近 likely arrived in Japan during the 5th-6th centuries CE, when the Japanese writing system adopted Chinese characters (kanji) through cultural exchange with China and the Korean peninsula. It was included in early Japanese texts and eventually became part of the standard Joyo Kanji list with the reading 'kin' (as in 近い - chikai) for 'near' or 'close.'