King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “interchange”

Romaji: koukan
exchange; interchange; switching; reciprocity

In Japanese, interchange is , read (koukan).

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

  1. n, vs, vt exchange; interchange; switching; reciprocity; barter; substitution

Kanji and stroke order

mingle, mixing, association
on: コウ
kun: まじ.わる、まじ.える、ま.じる、まじ.る
6 strokes · JLPT 2
interchange, period, change
on: カン
kun: か.える、-か.える、か.わる
12 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “interchange”

WordReadingMeaning
こうりゅう kouryuuexchange (e.g. cultural); interchange; interaction
ごかん gokaninterchange
インター intaainterchange
かえる kaeruto exchange; to interchange; to renew
とりかわす torikawasuto exchange; to interchange

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
こうつう koutsuutraffic; transportation
こうしょう koushounegotiations; bargaining; discussions
こうりゅう kouryuuexchange (e.g. cultural); interchange; interaction
がいこう gaikoudiplomacy
こうたい koutaichange; alternation; rotation
のりかえ norikaetransfer (trains, buses, etc.); change; connection
へんかん henkanchange; conversion; transformation
かんさん kansanconversion (e.g. yen to dollars); change; exchange

See also: Chinese symbol for “interchange”.

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.