Origin

This character appears to combine the idea of layering and folding. The left side contains a component relating to fields or crops, while the right side suggests the action of stacking or folding things together repeatedly. Over time, the character came to represent tatami mats—the woven straw mats used as flooring in Japanese homes—because they are made by layering materials and are often folded or stacked for storage. The meanings of folding, shutting, and putting away all flow naturally from this sense of compressing or layering things on top of one another.