Chinese character 革

The full word decides whether 革 means leather or change. In 皮革 it names leather; 改革 means reform, and 革命 means revolution. Those last two are formal terms for changing an institution or political order. A standalone 革 does not automatically mean “revolution.”

Where does 革 come from?

Early forms show a hide, though the precise picture is debated. Early forms of 革 are recorded in late Shang oracle-bone inscriptions, divination records carved on bone and turtle shell. Later bronze forms have been read either as a hide laid flat with its head, body and tail, or as animal skin being stripped and processed by hand.

The character also named leather armor and horse gear. In the Book of Changes, a Chinese divination text, 革 is associated with a change of rule. A traditional explanation connects the senses “remove” and “change” with stripping hair and working a hide; it gives a semantic link, not a dated account of every step.