Han character 件

Mandarin counts; Japanese names or points back to a matter.

Mandarin 件 (jiàn) follows a number as a classifier: 一件衣服, one clothing item; 一件事, one matter.

Japanese 件 (けん, ken) means a matter or case; 件の (くだんの, kudan no) refers to something mentioned earlier. 件 also has the reading kudari (くだり).

Its origin story remains debated

The Shuowen, an early Chinese dictionary, records a small-seal form, an old Chinese writing style. It glosses 件 as “divide” and analyzes 人 (“person”) + 牛 (“ox”), a traditional, debated account. In the Southern Liang period, Buddhist writer Sengyou used 件 as a classifier.