Abstract: The art of paper-making is a great invention in ancient China. Although the origin of the paper
and papermaking has been discussed for more than half a century, it is still inconclusive. This paper carries
on the analysis of the Chinese character of paper and a series of related characters from the perspective of
text meaning based on Shuowen Jiezi. On this basis, the author thinks that before the Eastern Han Dynasty,
China’s papermaking had gone through three stages of development. The Chinese character of paper in
Shuowen Jiezi, was the product of the second stage. It is neither a pure silk fiber paper in the traditional
view, nor a modern proposed pure plant fiber paper. The history of the creation of the character of paper
in Shuowen Jiezi represents an important stage, which served as a connecting link in the development of
papermaking in ancient China.

Key words: Shuowen Jiezi, Paper, Paper-making, Origin