Japanese symbol for “artifact”
遺物
いぶつ
Romaji: ibutsu
artifact; relic (of a past civilization); archaeological find
In Japanese, artifact is 遺物, read いぶつ (ibutsu).
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 artifact; relic (of a past civilization); archaeological find (archeol)
- n relic (of a former age); vestige of a bygone era; something surviving from the past
- n anachronism; outdated thing; something out of step with the times
- n keepsake; memento; relic (of a deceased person)
- n lost article; lost property; lost item
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “artifact”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 出土品 | しゅつどひん shutsudohin | artifact; artefact; excavated article |
| アーティファクト | アーティファクト aatifakuto | artifact; artefact |
| 収蔵品 | しゅうぞうひん shuuzouhin | collected item; artifact (in museum, etc.) |
| 人工物 | じんこうぶつ jinkoubutsu | artifact; artefact |
| 中間成果物 | ちゅうかんせいかぶつ chuukanseikabutsu | artifact |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 遺産 | いさん isan | inheritance; bequest; legacy |
| 遺体 | いたい itai | (dead) body; corpse; remains |
| 遺跡 | いせき iseki | (archeological) remains; ruins; relics |
| 遺伝 | いでん iden | heredity; (genetic) inheritance |
| 遺伝子 | いでんし idenshi | gene |
| 遺言 | ゆいごん yuigon | will; testament; one's dying wish |
| 動物 | どうぶつ doubutsu | animal |
| 人物 | じんぶつ jinbutsu | person; character; figure |
See also: Chinese symbol for “artifact”.
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.