Japanese symbol for “advancement”
向上
こうじょう
Romaji: koujou
elevation; rise; improvement; advancement
In Japanese, advancement is 向上, read こうじょう (koujou).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- n, vi, vs elevation; rise; improvement; advancement; progress
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “advancement”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 昇進 | しょうしん shoushin | promotion; advancement; rising in rank |
| 発展 | はってん hatten | development (of a situation, story, etc.); advancement; progression |
| 推進 | すいしん suishin | promotion (of a policy, project, movement, etc.); furtherance; advancement |
| 昇級 | しょうきゅう shoukyuu | promotion; advancement |
| 発達 | はったつ hattatsu | progress; development; advancement |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 方向 | ほうこう houkou | direction; orientation; bearing |
| 傾向 | けいこう keikou | tendency; trend; inclination |
| 向き | むき muki | direction; orientation; aspect |
| 向こう | むこう mukou | opposite side; other side |
| 意向 | いこう ikou | intention; inclination; mind |
| 以上 | いじょう ijou | not less than ...; ... and over; ... and above |
| 売り上げ | うりあげ uriage | amount sold; sales; proceeds |
| 上昇 | じょうしょう joushou | rising; ascending; climbing |
See also: Chinese symbol for “advancement”.
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.