The Character "馬" for Horse

With the Year of the Horse coming up, it's the perfect time to explore the stories behind Chinese character for horse (馬). We’ll take a closer look how the character evolved from a simple pictograph of a horse to its modern form today.

The Chinese character for horse (馬) originated as a pictograph in oracle bone script, designed toresemble a side view of a horse with a mane, head, tail, and four legs. Over millennia, this realistic depiction evolved into more stylized and abstract forms.

馬 is a classic example of a pictograph (象形字) — a character as a picture of what it means. The traditional form, represents the head and mane with the top strokes, while the four dots at the bottom, derived from earlier, more detailed drawings, represent the four legs and a long tail. It’s a great example of how Chinese characters began as pictures and became the forms we use today.