The kanji 棺 primarily means "coffin" or "sarcophagus." It refers to the container used to hold a dead body for burial or cremation. It evokes themes of death, mourning, and the final resting place.

・On-yomi (音読み): カン (kan) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): None, as the meaning is very specific.

⚫︎ 棺桶 (かんおけ) Translation: Coffin ⚫︎ 納棺 (のうかん) Translation: The act of putting a body in a coffin; entombment. ⚫︎ 死棺 (しかん) Translation: A coffin for the dead

⚫︎ This kanji is a phono-semantic compound. ⚫︎ The radical (部首 – bushu) is 木 (ki, meaning "tree" or "wood"), indicating the material used in its construction. ⚫︎ The phonetic component is 官 (kan), which originally meant "official" or "government." In this context, it suggests the formal or official aspect of death and burial rituals. The combination of 木 and 官 suggests a wooden container (coffin) related to official or formalized practices associated with death.