Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

kanji
     
         /kahn'jee/ (From the Japanese
        "kan" - the Chinese Han dynasty, and "ji" - {glyph} or letter
        of the alphabet.  Not capitalised.  Plural "kanji") The
        Japanese word for a {Han character} used in Japanese.  Kanji
        constitute a part of the {writing system} used to represent
        the Japanese language in written, printed and displayed form.
        The term is also used for the collection of all kanji
        {letters}.
     
        {US-ASCII} doesn't include kanji characters, but some
        {character encodings}, including {Unicode}, do.
     
        The Japanese writing system also uses hiragana, katakana, and
        sometimes romaji ({Roman alphabet} letters).  These characters
        are distinct from, though commonly used in combination with,
        kanji.  {Furigana} are also added sometimes.
     
        (2000-12-30)