The historical sequence of characters' evolution: Oracle Bone Inscriptions-bronze inscription-seal script-official script-regular script-cursive script-running script.

1. Oracle Bone Inscriptions

Oracle Bone Inscriptions is also called "Qiwen" and "Yin Ruins Writing". According to archaeological findings, Oracle Bone Inscriptions is the earliest systematic ancient Chinese character, which was first unearthed in Yinxu, Anyang City, Henan Province. Oracle Bone Inscriptions is a writing engraved or written on tortoise shells and animal bones.

Due to the lack of understanding of natural science, people need divination whenever they encounter something, which is why words are carved on Oracle bones. And because the ancients attached great importance to divination, Oracle Bone Inscriptions passed down slowly, made continuous progress in historical development, and finally slowly evolved into later Chinese characters.

2. inscriptions on bronze

inscriptions on bronze wares of the Shang and Zhou dynasties, also known as Zhong Dingwen, refer to a kind of calligraphy name of Chinese characters. Shang and Zhou Dynasties were the era of bronzes, in which ding was the representative of the ritual vessels and bell was the representative of the musical instruments, and "Zhong Ding" was synonymous with bronzes. Bronze inscriptions were used for about 8 years, from the end of Shang Dynasty to the Qin Dynasty's destruction of the Six Kingdoms.

There are four kinds of inscriptions on bronze, namely, inscriptions on bronze in Shang Dynasty (the longest one, only over 4 words), inscriptions on bronze in Western Zhou Dynasty (the inscriptions on bronze gradually flourished, recording more things about the son of heaven), inscriptions on bronze in Eastern Zhou Dynasty (recording more things about the success of princes, in its heyday) and inscriptions on bronze in Qin and Han Dynasties (the inscriptions on bronze gradually declined).

3. seal script

seal script is a general term for big seal script and small seal script. The big seal script refers to the inscriptions on bronze, bronze and six languages, which preserve the obvious characteristics of ancient hieroglyphics. Xiao Zhuan, also known as "Qin Zhuan", is a common character of Qin State, and a simplified font of Da Zhuan, which is characterized by even and neat shape and easy writing.

4. Official script

Official script is a common solemn font in Chinese characters, with slightly wide and flat writing effect, long horizontal drawing and short straight drawing, and paying attention to "swallow tail of silkworm head" and "twists and turns". It originated in the Qin Dynasty and reached its peak in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The calligraphy circle is known as "han li Tang Kai". It is also said that official script originated in the Warring States period.

5. Regular script

Although the regular script in China had sprouted in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the truly literate regular script appeared in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. Regular script changed from folk germination to calligraphy orthodoxy, and was greatly studied by literati at that time as a fashion. This is also the most widely used Chinese character at present.

6. cursive script

cursive script is a font of Chinese characters, and whatever scribbled characters are written, they are all cursive scripts. The cursive script began in the Han Dynasty and evolved on the basis of the official script in order to write simply. There are three kinds of cursive scripts: Zhangcao, Modern Caocao and Crazy Caocao. The cursive script is characterized by ups and downs, running dragons and snakes in one go.

7. Running script

Running script can be divided into running script and running script. It developed and originated on the basis of regular script, and it is a font between regular script and cursive script, which is produced to make up for the slow writing speed of regular script and the illegibility of cursive script. The brushwork is not as sloppy as cursive script, and it is as correct as regular script. It appeared in the late Western Han Dynasty and early Eastern Han Dynasty.