The Clothing FamilyRadical 衣
A garment is a social ladder
ShuowenShuowen: “Clothing (衣) is that which one relies on (依). Above is 衣, below is 裳. Drawn as a form sheltering.”
The oracle form of 衣 is a portrait of a jacket: crossed collar, two sleeves, hem. The 衣 radical is the script’s wardrobe: from the under-vest against the skin to the emperor’s dragon robe, every layer has a character. And the most abstract words — 初 “beginning”, 表 “surface”, 衷 “inner heart”, 哀 “grief” — all grew out of clothing: the first cut of a garment is “beginning”; the hair on a fur’s outside is “surface”. You can read a whole life from one garment.
The Root Character · Reading “衣” in Three Layers
See the form
The oracle form: a crossed collar in a V-shape, body and sleeves below.
Read the logic
On the left it shortens to 衤 (shirt, padded coat, 初, 被); at the foot it stays 衣 (装, 裂, 袋, 裳) — learn these two faces and you own the wardrobe.
Grasp the wisdom
“The thread in a loving mother’s hand, the coat on a wandering son’s back.” Clothing in China was never external: it was a mother’s heart, a rank’s label, and a person’s first 依 — reliance.
The Making of a Glyph
- Oracle boneCrossed collar, two sleeves, a portrait of a jacket.
- BronzeThe garment fills; the collar is distinct.
- Small sealRounded curves, hem flowing like folds.
- Clerical & regularDot, bar, stroke and hook: 衣.
Glyphs are schematic reconstructions, not rubbings.
The Chain of Garments
From the vest against the skin to the emperor’s coiled dragons — a garment is a social ladder: read a person’s collar and you know his step.
From inner to outer, humble to nobleUnderclothes — what is worn in private.
The most intimate layer — hence 亵渎, “to profane”: what must not be shown.
Character Assembly · Two Parts Become One
When two parts walk toward each other, a new character is born. Watch how they meet.
初 chū
FormA knife (刀) at a garment (衤) — the first cut.
LogicShuowen: “初, the beginning. From knife and garment: the start of cutting a coat.”
Wisdom起初, 初衷, 初心 — every beginning is compared to tailoring: a life is cut out, one stroke at a time.
表 biǎo
FormFur (毛) over a robe (衣) — the hair on the outside.
LogicFur robes were worn hair-out — that outside hair is 表: originally, the outer coat.
WisdomSurface, expression, bearing — 表 came from a fur’s outer hair and became the name of everything outward. 表里如一, “outside and inside the same”, still measures a person.
衷 zhōng
Form“Middle” (中) wrapped inside a garment (衣).
LogicThe innermost layer of dress was 衷.
Wisdom由衷之言, 无动于衷 — the heart has layers too: the innermost garment is the true heart.
哀 āi
FormA mouth (口) held inside a garment (衣).
LogicGrief that does not cry out — the mouth caught in the clothes. Shuowen: “哀, to pity.”
Wisdom哀 is grief kept in: the cry swallowed into the coat is the truest sorrow. Grief with restraint — the ancients kept measure even in mourning.
Branches of the Family
Hover (or tap) a character to see what it means.
The Wardrobe
Regulars of the closet, each with a name.
- 裙
- 裤
- 袜
- 被
- 袋
- 襟
- 裾
- 袂
Collar & Sleeve
Collar and sleeves are a garment’s finest parts — so they named the leaders.
- 领
- 袖
- 衽
- 褐
- 裘
- 袤
- 裴
- 褒
From Cloth to Character
Worn long enough, clothing wore into character.
- 依
- 装
- 裂
- 卒
- 襄
- 袒
- 褚
- 裔
「How can you say you have no clothes? I will share my robe with you.」
—— Book of Songs
「The thread in a loving mother’s hand, the coat on a wandering son’s back.」
—— Meng Jiao