curriculum, continuation, passage of time
歴 centers on the idea of things passing in sequence: the passage of time, a continuing record, or a curriculum that unfolds step by step.
歴 is the modern simplified form of 歷. The older form combines 止 (foot/stop) with 厤, which likely contributed the sound and the idea of passing through or sequence.
The top looks like a cliff 厂 over trees 林, and the bottom is a foot 止. Imagine walking past a line of trees under a cliff, marking the passage of time and a continuing journey.
For レキ, picture a wrecking ball swinging in a continuous arc through time: wreck -> レキ, and the ball keeps passing through the scene.
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history
personal history; background; career
experience; history; record; career
personal history; background; career
successive generations; successive emperors
academic background; academic credentials; academic record
electricity
work experience; work history
successive jobs; consecutive jobs
travels; pilgrimage; itinerancy
high academic achievement; advanced academic training; higher education
veteran (e.g. soldier); battle-hardened; seasoned; (of) long military service
accepted; fully-fledged; clear; respectable
brief personal record; short curriculum vitae; short CV
personal history
medical history; case history; clinical history
military service; combat experience
history; career
evident; plain; distinct; clear
one's history as a performer