Japanese symbol for “browning”

褐変

かっぺん

Romaji: kappen

browning

In Japanese, browning is 褐変, read かっぺん (kappen).

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, vs browning

Kanji and stroke order

褐

brown, woollen kimono

on: カツ

13 strokes · JLPT 1

変

unusual, change, strange

on: ヘン
kun: か.わる、か.わり、か.える

9 strokes · JLPT 2

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

Word	Reading	Meaning
褐色	かっしょく kasshoku	dark brown; colour of tanned skin
茶褐色	ちゃかっしょく chakasshoku	dark reddish-brown; liver color
赤褐色	せっかっしょく sekkasshoku	reddish brown; rufous
黒褐色	こっかっしょく kokkasshoku	blackish brown
褐藻	かっそう kassou	brown algae; phaeophyceae
大変	たいへん taihen	very; greatly; terribly
変更	へんこう henkou	change; modification; alteration
変化	へんか henka	change; variation; alteration

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.