The kanji 歴 generally conveys the concept of "history," "career," "experience," or "a trace of something that has happened." It implies a sequence of events, a past, or a record of what has occurred. It often refers to a period of time and the events that unfolded within it, or a person's background or work history.

・On-yomi (音読み): レキ (reki) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): None, or rarely used as a standalone verb

⚫︎ 歴史 (れきし) Translation: History ⚫︎ 経歴 (けいれき) Translation: Career, background, personal history ⚫︎ 履歴書 (りれきしょ) Translation: Resume, curriculum vitae (CV)

If the user's native language is Vietnamese, this section would be included. Vietnamese has a significant correspondence with Kanji characters due to the shared cultural and historical influences. The Kanji character 歴 and Vietnamese share a similar origin, as Vietnamese adopted many Chinese characters. Many Vietnamese words are derived from Sino-Vietnamese (Hán-Việt) vocabulary. Some modern Vietnamese words derived from Sino-Vietnamese that share the same origin as the kanji 歴 include: ⚫︎ lịch (as in "lịch sử" - history, "tiểu sử" - biography, "kinh lịch" - experience.)

The kanji 歴 is a pictographic-semantic compound. The left side is a component representing steps or footprints (originally, this part had a different shape, but evolved over time), symbolizing movement and passage. The right side is a character, 朿 (shi) that indicates "sharp objects" and also "to mark" or "to pierce." The original meaning of this character was to keep a record or a track of the passage of time. Over time, the meaning of the kanji broadened to encompass “history,” which represents the collection of events and experiences.