benevolence; friendly feeling
Rare and archaic; mainly appears in the fixed expression 款を通ずる (to establish friendly relations). Not used independently in modern Japanese.
See also: 款を通ずる (かんをつうずる)
The two countries maintained peace by establishing friendly relations.
clause; article; stipulation
loan; borrowing
signature and seal (on artwork)
clause; article; provision; stipulation
giant butterbur · Japanese silverleaf · kerria
The kanji 款 originally meant 'sincere' or 'to knock', and was borrowed into Japanese with the meaning 'article' or 'clause' in formal writing. The 'benevolence' sense is an extension of the idea of sincerity, but is now largely obsolete outside set phrases.