The name South Africa in Chinese / Japanese...

This is the Chinese name for the country of South Africa.

See Also:  Africa

This is South Africa in Japanese.

Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Katakana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

非洲 is the Chinese name for the continent of Africa.

南 means south or southern.

In Chinese, this is also a surname that romanizes as Nan.

In Japanese, it can also be the given names Mimi, Minamihama, Minamitate, Minami, Mina, Miumi, Hinata, Nantetsu, or Namuchoru. It can be the Japanese surnames Nanzaki, Nan, Namu, Nami, or Takaminami.

阿非利加 is the transliteration to Mandarin Chinese for the Latin / Spanish name África.

This is Central Africa written in Japanese.

Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Katakana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

This is South Korea written in Japanese.

This is the Chinese name for the continent of South America.

南アメリカ is the more common way to write South America in Japanese.

Note: Because this selection contains some special Japanese Katakana characters, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

南韓 is the common Chinese name for the country of South Korea.

The official English name being Republic of Korea.

See Also:  North Korea | Asia

詠春拳 is the title for the “Wing Chun” school of martial arts but with the addition of the character for “fist” at the end. So this is “Wing Chun Fist” or literally “Singing Spring Fist.”

There are lots of alternate Cantonese romanizations for this, such as “Wing Chun Kuen,” “Wing Tsun Cheun,” “Eng Chun Pai,” and “Wing Ceon Kyun.” The characters are the same; just the lack of a standard Cantonese romanization means that people make up their own based on what they think it sounds like.

This is the Chinese name for the country of Egypt.

Note: Egypt rests partially in Asia and Africa.

See Also:  Africa | Asia

This is the Chinese name for the country of Trinidad and Tobago.

Definitions vary as to whether in North or South America.

See Also:  North America | South America

阿魯巴 is the Chinese name for the territory of Aruba (overseas country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands).

Note: Definitions vary as to whether Aruba is in North America or South America.

See Also:  Netherlands | North America | South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Peru.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Argentina.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Guyana.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Paraguay.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Suriname.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Uruguay.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Bolivia.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Colombia.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Ecuador.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Venezuela.

See Also:  South America

This is the Chinese name for French Polynesia (overseas territory of France).

See Also:  South America

This short Japanese name for the country of North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea).

There is a 3-character name, 北朝鮮 that is a lot more common.

See Also:  South Korea | Asia

法羅島 is the Chinese name for the country of the Faroe Islands (overseas territory of Denmark).

See Also:  Denmark | South America

北朝鮮 is the Chinese and Japanese name for the country of North Korea.

The official English name being Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

See Also:  South Korea | Asia

This is the Chinese name for the country of Brazil.

See Also:  Peru | Chile | South America

This is the Chinese name for the country of Benin.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Chad.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Gabon.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Ghana.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Guinea.

See Also:  Africa

馬里 is the Chinese name for the country of Mali (Republic of Mali).

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Sudan.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Togo.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Angola.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Burundi.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Cameroon.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Comoros.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Djibouti.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Gambia.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Kenya.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Lesotho.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Malawi.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Morocco.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Niger.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Rwanda.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Somalia.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Uganda.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Zambia.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for Anguilla (overseas territory of the United Kingdom).

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Botswana.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Liberia.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Mauritius.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Mozambique.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Namibia.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Nigeria.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Senegal.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Sierra Leone.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Swaziland.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Tanzania.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Zimbabwe.

See Also:  Africa

阿爾及利亞 is the Chinese name for the country of Algeria.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of the Central African Republic.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Ethiopia.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Madagascar.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Mauritania.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the country of Seychelles.

See Also:  Africa

This is the Chinese name for the Falkland Islands (overseas territory of the United Kingdom).

See Also:  Great Britain | United Kingdom | Africa

This is the Chinese name for the city of Sydney, Australia, capital of New South Wales.

黃山 is the title for Mt Huang, Yellow mountains, or Huangshan.

This refers to the Mountain(s) in south Anhui, a centuries-old tourist attraction.

麒麟 is the title of a mythical beast of Asia.

The animal is thought to be related to the giraffe, and in some ways, it is a giraffe. However, it is often depicted with the horns of a dragon or deer and sometimes with the body like a horse, but many variations exist.

In Japanese, it is pronounced “Kirin” as in “Kirin Ichiban” beer.


Notes:

1. This is sometimes spelled as “kylin.”

2. In Japanese, this is the only Kanji word for giraffe. Therefore in Japan, this word needs context to know whether you are talking about the mythical creature or the long-necked giraffe of Africa.

3. Apparently, this was the first word used for regular giraffes in China (some were brought from Africa to China during the Ming Dynasty - probably around the year 1400). Though the mythical creature may have existed before, the name “qilin” was given to the “new giraffe.” This is because, more than 600 years ago, giraffes somewhat matched the mythical creature's description when Chinese people saw them for the first time. Later, to avoid such an ambiguous title, a three-character word was devised to mean a “giraffe of Africa.” The characters for “qilin” shown here are only for the mythological version in modern Chinese.

4. More information about the qilin / kirin from Wikipedia.

5. This creature is sometimes translated as the “Chinese Unicorn,” although it is generally portrayed with two horns. I think this is done more for the fantasy aspect of the unicorn and because most westerners don't know what a qilin or kirin is (this avoids a long explanation by the translator).

6. In Korean, this can mean kirin or simply giraffe (usually, the mythological creature is what they would think of when seeing these characters alone on a wall scroll).

華川郡 is the name Hwacheon or Hwach'ŏn in Korean Hanja.

華川郡 usually refers to the Hwacheon County (Hwacheon-gun) county in Gangwon Province, South Korea.

廣東 is the title of Guangdong province (Kwangtung) in south China.

In English, this place is also known as Canton, and is the root of the word Cantonese for the language, culture, and cooking style of this region.

Beyond Canton, this can be the surname Hirotou or Hiroto in Japanese though often written in the modern form of 広東 in Japan.

麻將 is the Chinese title for the game of mahjong.

Mahjong can also be spelled majiang, mah-jongg, and numerous other variants when played by people of other dialects. While the game originated in China, you will also find it played in Vietnam, South Korea, and Japan.

This is the Chinese name for the country of Tonga.

While this is the name of that south Pacific archipelago kingdom in Chinese, it does not mean the same in Japanese...
In Japanese, this is a female given name Yuka. There are several female names that romanize as Yuka, so be sure you get the right one.

See Also:  Oceania

復活節 is the Chinese and old Korean way to write Easter.

Easter is not a well-known holiday in China, but Chinese Christians tend to follow the American tradition of the Easter egg ritual, etc. Non-Christians may think it's a celebration of rabbits that can lay eggs.

South Korea has a higher percentage of Christians than any other Asian country, so they celebrate Easter with plenty of enthusiasm.

釋迦牟尼 is a transliteration of “Shakyamuni” or “Sakyamuni” in Chinese, Japanese, and old Korean.

The perceived meaning of the name is roughly translated as “Sage of the Sakyas.”
This same Buddha is also known as “Siddhartha Gautama,” “Gotama Buddha,” “Tathagata,” or simply, “The Supreme Buddha.”

Shakyamuni is the legendary man and prince who eventually established the Buddhist religion.

Note: Occasionally Romanized as “Siddhattha Gotama.”

This combination of characters is sometimes seen and used in South Korea and Japan as well (with the same meaning).

Note: 釋迦牟尼 came from the Sanskrit शाक्यमुनि and can also be romanized with diuretics as Śākyamuni.

菩提達磨 is the title Bodhidharma in Chinese and Japanese.

Bodhidharma, commonly known as Damo, is reputed as the founder of the Chan (Zen) or Intuitional or Mystic School.

He likely came from south India and spread Mahayana Buddhism throughout China (even meeting the Emperor) and his disciples likely spread this all the way to Korea, Japan, and beyond in the 5th and 6th centuries.

Sometimes the last character varies in Chinese to 摩 instead of 磨 - let me know if you need a certain variation when you order.

三寶 is the title for “Three Precious Treasures of Buddhism” or “The Triple Gem.”

These three treasures are the Buddha 佛, the Dharma 法 (teachings or the law of the Buddha), and the Sangha 僧 (the community of monks or followers).

This term is used by most (perhaps not all) Buddhists in China, Japan, and South Korea (written the same in the original form but pronounced differently in each language). Non-Buddhists may just read this as “Three Treasures” without the religious context. For instance, there is also a “Three Treasures of Chinese Medicine” that is sometimes titled the same way.

In modern Japanese and Simplified Chinese, this is written 三宝 instead of 三寶.

南山之壽 is a wish for long life for someone. The first part of this Japanese phrase is “Nan Zan,” which means “south mountain.” This mountain is one of the good wishes, good fortune, and prosperity. The title is often used as a salutation of good wishes.

The third Kanji is just a connector, and the last Kanji means long life or longevity.

I guess you could translate this phrase as “May your life be as long as Nan Zan is tall.”

谦逊正直温柔忍耐克己不屈 are the virtues used by Choi Kwang Do Martial Arts.

The characters shown here are in the ancient Korean Hanja form of writing. If you wish for a Korean Hangul form of these tenets, we can arrange that with our Master Calligrapher Xing An-Ping (click on the Hangul next to the South Korean flag above to order this in Hangul).

孔子 is how to write the name of the great sage, known in the West as Confucius.

His real name is Kongzi (The name Confucius is a westernized version of his name - his family name is Kong, and “zi” was added as a title of distinction).

He lived some 2500 years ago in Qufu, a town in modern-day Shandong Province of Northern China (about 6 hours south of Beijing by bus). He was a consort to Emperors, and after his death, the impact of his philosophies still served to advise emperors, officials, and common people for generations.

Also during these thousands of years, the Kong family remained powerful in China, and the Kong estate was much like the Vatican in Rome. The Kong estate existed as if on sovereign ground with its own small garrison of guards and the privileges of a kingdom within an empire.

This was true up until the time the Kong family had to flee to Taiwan in 1949 when the Red Army took victory over the Nationalists during the Revolution. The home of Confucius was later razed and all statues were defaced or stolen during the Cultural Revolution. Finally, after years of smearing his name and image, it is once again okay to celebrate the teachings of Confucius in mainland China.

Known as Khổng Tử in Vietnamese.

身土不二 (Shindofuni) is originally a Buddhist concept or proverb referring to the inseparability of body-mind and geographical circumstances.

This reads, “Body [and] earth [are] not two.”

Other translations or matching ideas include:
Body and land are one.
Body and earth can not be separated.
Body earth sensory curation.
You are what you eat.
Indivisibility of the body and the land (because the body is made from food and food is made from the land).

Going further, this speaks of our human bodies and the land from which we get our food being closely connected. This phrase is often used when talking about natural and organic vegetables coming directly from the farm to provide the healthiest foods in Japan.

Character notes: 身(shin) in this context does not just mean your physical body but a concept including both body and mind.
土 (do) refers to the soil, earth, clay, land, or in some cases, locality. It's not the proper name of Earth, the planet. However, it can refer to the land or realm we live in.

Japanese note: This has been used in Japan, on and off, since 1907 as a slogan for a governmental healthy eating campaign (usually pronounced as shindofuji instead of the original shindofuni in this context). It may have been hijacked from Buddhism for this propaganda purpose, but at least this is “healthy propaganda.”

Korean note: The phrase 身土不二 was in use by 1610 A.D. in Korea, where it can be found in an early medical journal.
In modern South Korea, it's written in Hangul as 신토불이. Korea used Chinese characters (same source as Japanese Kanji) as their only written standard form of the language until about a hundred years ago. Therefore, many Koreans will recognize this as a native phrase and concept.

See Also:  Strength and Love in Unity

跆拳道精神禮義廉耻忍耐克己百折不屈 is General Choi's writing that is often called “The Tenets of Taekwon-do.”

The actual title would be translated as “Taekwondo Spirit” or “The Spirit of Taekwondo.” It was originally written in Korean Hanja (Chinese characters used in Korea for about 1600 years).

Hapkido or 合氣道 is a mostly-defensive martial art in Korea.

Hapkido has some connection to the Aikido of Japan. They are written with the same characters in both languages. However, it should be noted that the Korean Hanja characters shown here are the traditional Chinese form - but in modern Japan, the middle character was slightly simplified.
Note: You can consider this to be the older Japanese written form of Aikido. Titles on older books and signs about Aikido use this form.

The connection between Japanese Aikido and Korean Hapkido is muddled in history. The issue is probably due to the difficult relationship between the two countries around WWII. Many Koreans became virtual slaves to the Japanese during that period. After WWII, many things in Korea were disassociated from having any Japanese origin. The relationship has greatly mellowed out now.

Looking at the characters, the first means “union” or “harmony.”
The second character means “universal energy” or “spirit.”
The third means “way” or “method.”
One way to translate this into English is the “Harmonizing Energy Method.” This makes sense, as Hapkido has more to do with redirecting energy than fighting strength against strength.

More Hapkido info

More notes:
1. Sometimes Hapkido is Romanized as “hap ki do,” “hapki-do” “hab gi do” or “hapgido.”

2. Korean Hanja characters are actually Chinese characters that usually hold the same meaning in both languages. There was a time when these characters were the standard and only written form of Korean. The development of modern Korean Hangul characters is a somewhat recent event in the greater scope of history. There was a time when Chinese characters were the written form of many languages in places known in modern times as North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, and a significant portion of Malaysia. Even today, more people in the world can read Chinese characters than English.

3. While these Korean Hanja characters can be pronounced in Chinese, this word is not well-known in China and is not considered part of the Chinese lexicon.