野

It is a phono-semantic compound formed from:

里 (“village, settlement”), which indicates meaning,

予 (“I, me”), which serves as the phonetic element.

However, in its earliest forms in oracle bone inscriptions and bronze script, this character appeared as 埜, a compound of 林 (“forest”) and 土 (“earth”), originally a pictograph-ideograph depicting a plain or field made up of trees and soil.

By the time of seal script, a number of variant forms had developed:

埜 (林 + 土),

𡐨 (林 + 予 + 土),

㙒 (田 + 予 + 土),

and others.

Eventually, the form with 里 + 予 prevailed and continues in use today as 野. Among its variant forms, 埜 still occasionally appears in personal names and place names.

(old or jinmeiyō form) 埜