For investigating the effect of fuel stratification on flame propagation, initial flame development and propagation were visualized under different axially stratified states in a port injection SI engine. Stratification was controlled by the combination of the port swirl ratio and injection timing. Experiments were performed in an optical single cylinder engine modified from a production engine and images were captured through the quartz window mounted in the piston by an intensified CCD camera. Firstly in this paper, the characteristics under no port-generated swirl condition, i.e. normal conventional case was studied. Under various stratified conditions, flame images were captured at the pre-set crank angles. These were averaged and processed to characterize the flames propagation. The flame stability was estimated by the weighted average of flame area and luminosity. The stability was also evaluated through the standard deviation of flame area and propagation distance, and mean absolute deviation of propagating direction. Results show that stratification state according to injection timing do not affect on the direction of flame propagation. The flame development and the initial flame stability are strongly dependent on the stratified conditions and the initial flame stability is closely related to the engine stability and lean misfire limit.