Japanese symbol for “inscription”
碑文
ひぶん
Romaji: hibun
inscription; epitaph; epigraph
In Japanese, inscription is 碑文, read ひぶん (hibun).
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
- adj-no, n inscription; epitaph; epigraph
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “inscription”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 銘文 | めいぶん meibun | inscription |
| 銘 | めい mei | inscription; epitaph |
| 賛 | さん san | inscription (on a painting) |
| 内接 | ないせつ naisetsu | inscription; being inscribed |
| 碑銘 | ひめい himei | inscription; epitaph |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 石碑 | せきひ sekihi | stone monument |
| 墓碑 | ぼひ bohi | gravestone; tombstone |
| 詩碑 | しひ shihi | monument (stele, gravestone, etc.) engraved with a poem |
| 歌碑 | かひ kahi | monument (stele, gravestone, etc.) engraved with a waka |
| 記念碑 | きねんひ kinenhi | commemorative plaque (usu. on a stone); stone monument (bearing an inscription) |
| 文化 | ぶんか bunka | culture; civilization; civilisation |
| 文字 | もじ moji | letter (of an alphabet); character |
| 注文 | ちゅうもん chuumon | order (for an item) |
See also: Chinese symbol for “inscription”.
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.