Han character 褐

It names coarse clothing and, in color words, a dull brown.

In classical Chinese, 褐 named coarse garments made from hemp or wool. The Han-era dictionary Shuowen Jiezi also records woven hemp footwear and explains the character as 衣, the clothing sign, plus 曷, which hints at its sound.

Written forms are attested in Qin-period and Western Han manuscripts. Because coarse clothes marked poverty, classical Chinese texts also used 褐 by extension for a poor or low-status person; using it as a person-label can sound contemptuous.

Why can 褐 mean dark indigo?

Japanese かちいろ is the historical dark-indigo reading.

In Chinese, 褐色 means a dull yellow-black or brown: Mainland Mandarin reads 褐 hè (falling tone), while Taiwan dictionaries also record hé (rising tone). Korean uses the same character in 갈색, meaning brown.

Japanese 褐色 is usually read かっしょく (kasshoku) and means dark brown. In medieval Japan, かちいろ (kachiiro) meant dark indigo. A lone 褐 does not show which language or word you have, so ask for the surrounding text.