collar, neck, lapel, one's inner feelings
襟 centers on the area around the neck and chest, especially the collar or lapel of clothing. The sense of one's inner feelings extends naturally from the idea of something close to the heart or held within the chest.
襟 combines 衤 (clothing) with 禁, which likely contributes the sound キン and may also suggest the idea of something forbidden or restricted, perhaps referring to the collar as a boundary or enclosed area. The exact historical development is uncertain.
The clothing radical 衤 beside 禁 suggests a part of clothing that is restricted or held close: the collar or lapel. Picture a formal robe where the collar is the most controlled, close-fitting part, and from that closeness comes the idea of inner feelings kept near the heart.
For キン, imagine a king wearing a high, stiff collar that restricts his neck: king -> キン, and the collar is the part of his robe that feels most confining.
collar; lapel; neckband; neck
hairline at the nape of the neck; nape
(around the) neck; nape
unbuttoning a collar
nape of the neck
round collar (of Western clothing)
same-colored neckband (coloured)
quality collar for an under kimono
neckband (of a shirt)
mind of the emperor; inner feelings of the emperor
back of a collar
turned-down collar; turndown collar; lapel
protective collar on kimono or bed clothes
white collar; white lapel
collared mangabey (Cercocebus torquatus); red-capped mangabey; white-collared mangabey
griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus)
woolly-necked stork (Ciconia episcopus); whitenecked stork
black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata)
stand-up collar; standing collar; mandarin collar
one's heart