Climate, Sign

Interesting Fact

The kanji 候 has an interesting connection between people and observing signs. Its older meaning involved waiting, watching, or observing carefully. In ancient East Asian societies, people watched the sky, wind, animals, and other natural changes to judge what might happen next. This idea eventually became associated with climate and seasonal conditions. That connection survives beautifully in Japanese: 気候 (kikō) means climate, while 候補 (kōho) means candidate—both preserving different branches of this character's long history.