Japanese symbol for “frontier”
境界
きょうかい
Romaji: kyoukai
boundary; border; limit; bounds
In Japanese, frontier is 境界, read きょうかい (kyoukai).
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 boundary; border; limit; bounds; frontier
Written forms: 境界、疆界. Readings: きょうかい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “frontier”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| フロンティア | フロンティア furontia | frontier (esp. the American frontier) |
| 辺境 | へんきょう henkyou | remote region; outlying district; border district |
| 新開地 | しんかいち shinkaichi | newly-opened land; recently-settled region; frontier |
| 新境地 | しんきょうち shinkyouchi | new ground (science, art, etc.); new front; new scope |
| 辺塞 | へんさい hensai | remote area; frontier |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 環境 | かんきょう kankyou | environment; surroundings; circumstances |
| 国境 | こっきょう kokkyou | border (between countries); national border |
| 心境 | しんきょう shinkyou | state of mind; mental state; mental attitude |
| 境内 | けいだい keidai | grounds (esp. of shrines and temples); compound; churchyard |
| 境遇 | きょうぐう kyouguu | one's circumstances; environment; situation (in life) |
| 世界 | せかい sekai | the world; society; the universe |
| 業界 | ぎょうかい gyoukai | business world; business circles; (the) industry |
| 限界 | げんかい genkai | limit; bound |
See also: Chinese symbol for “frontier”.
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.