cargo vessel; lighter
Refers to a small cargo ship, especially one used for coastal transport or as a lighter (a flat-bottomed barge for loading/unloading larger vessels).
In the Edo period, cargo vessels handled the transport of goods.
Variant kanji form using 廻 instead of 回; both are used.
Compound of 回 (kai, 'circulate; go around') + 船 (sen, 'ship'), referring to a vessel that plies a regular route or carries cargo.