Like animals? These two characters are the way to write "animals" in Chinese characters, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

The first character means "moving" and the second means "things". So animals are "moving things" in these Asian languages.

Score: 100/100

This is literally what it says.

There is even a TV show in China that is similar to Wild Kingdom or what you would currently see on the Discovery Channel that has this same title.

For your information: In the Chinese way of thinking, the Tiger is the king of the animal kingdom (lions are not native to China, so the tiger took the role that we have given to the lion in our western way of thinking).

The Japanese version has a slight variation on the last character. Let me know if your audience is Japanese, and we will have it written in that form for you.

Score: 54/100

This is the way to write "bear" (as in the animal) in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja. If you are a bear fanatic, this is the wall scroll for you.

This is not specific to species, such as panda bear, polar bear, brown bear, etc.

If you need a more specific title, just post a special Asian calligraphy title request on our forum.

See Also...  Panda

Score: 29/100

Separately, the first character here does mean "danger" or "to endanger" and the second character can mean "opportunity".

However, I want to debunk a myth that was propagated by some westerners who did not have a clear understanding of Asian languages...

While often, Chinese/Japanese/Korean compound words (words of two or more characters) are the sum of their parts, this is not always the case. The compound is often understood with a completely different meaning than the two characters individually.

Many have said that the Chinese/Japanese/Korean word for Crisis is made up of the characters for "danger" and "opportunity". This is true when phrased this way.
However, it's not absolutely correct to say that "danger + opportunity = crisis" in Asian cultures.

English example:
If I tell you that...
Bovine creature + Guy behind the plate in baseball = Locomotive protection
...you would think I was mad. But consider that "cow + catcher = cowcatcher", which is the device that used to be found on steam engines to protect them if they hit an animal on the tracks. When we hear the word "cowcatcher" we don't separate the words into their individual meanings (necessarily).
The same is true with the word for crisis in Chinese/Japanese/Korean. While you can separate the characters, few Asian people would automatically do so in their minds.

The final answer:
It is a half-truth to say, "danger plus opportunity equals crisis" in Chinese/Japanese/Korean. Use this statement and concept with caution.

Also, the second character can mean "secret" or "machine" depending on context so I guess you have to say "a dangerous machine = crisis" or "danger + a secret = crisis". Both of these are only slightly more ridiculous than the first premise.

PS: This is probably not a great word for a scroll, unless you have a special use for it.

Score: 14/100

This phase often goes with "An eye for an eye", even in Chinese. Revenge seems to cross all languages, cultures, and even species (animals are known to take revenge too).

If a Chinese person uses just one phrase, it will be this "tooth for a tooth" one. Although, we are more likely to say "eye for an eye" alone in English.

Chinese people may also read this with a meaning of "Bite me and I will bite you back". However, it literally means "tooth for a tooth" or "you take my tooth, I take yours".

Score: 10/100

This is the character used to represent the elusive animal known as the wolf in both Chinese and Japanese.

If you are a fan of the wolf, or the wolf means something special to you, this could make a great addition to your wall.

Do keep in mind, that much like our preception of wolves in the history of western culture, eastern cultures do not have a very positive view of wolves (save the scientific community and animal lovers). The wolf is clearly an animal that is misunderstood or feared the world over.

This character is seldom used alone in Korean Hanja, and is used in a compound word that means utter failure (as in a wolf getting into your chicken pen - or an otherwise ferocious failure). Not a good choice if your audience is Korean.

Score: 6/100

This is a list of the Chinese characters for the five animals of Shaolin Kung Fu in a comfortable order (meaning that they are in the proper order and will simply "feel right" to a Chinese person who views this arrangement).

Score: 10/100

This is a list of the Chinese characters for the five animals of Shaolin Kung Fu in a comfortable order (meaning that they are in the proper order and will simply "feel right" to a Chinese person who views this arrangement).

Score: 10/100

Being tolerant is accepting differences. You don't expect others to think, look, speak or act just like you. You are free of prejudice, knowing that all people have feelings, needs, hopes and dreams. Tolerance is also accepting things you wish were different with patience and flexibility.

These characters can also be translated as magnanimity, generosity, or leniency.

Note: There is a tiny deviation in the first character when written in Japanese. If you choose our Japanese master calligrapher, the little dot on the lower right of the first character will be omitted. With or without the dot, this can be read in Chinese, Japanese, and old Korean.

See Also...  Patience

Score: 4/100

This is the title "Naruto" from the Japanese animation series. See Naruto Anime Series.

Because of the special Japanese character set used to write this title, it can only be written by the Japanese master calligrapher. Do not try to order it from one of our Chinese calligraphers.

Please note that while this is the correct title for this anime series, it can also mean the "@" sign or "at" in Japanese under different context (a Japanese person not familiar with the series may be confused by your wall scroll).

Score: 6/100

This word 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”, even though 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).

Score: 4/100

This is the way to say mankind or humankind in Chinese. It's kind of the "animal title" for human. This is the word you would use if you said this phrase in Chinese, "Mammals include dolphins, monkeys, dogs, and humans among others".

This is a weird selection for a calligraphy wall scroll. But a customer begged me to add this word.

Score: 4/100

Generosity is giving and sharing. You share freely, not with the idea of receiving something in return. You find ways to give others happiness, and give just for the joy of giving. Generosity is one of the best ways to show love and friendship.

This word can also be translated as charitable, magnanimity, liberality or in some context broad-mindedness.

Note: There is a tiny deviation in the first character when written in Japanese. If you choose our Japanese master calligrapher, the little dot on the lower right of the first character will be omitted. With or without the dot, this can be read in Chinese, Japanese, and old Korean.

See Also...  Benevolence | Altruism | Charity

Score: 4/100

This is the Chinese word for Giraffe (the animal).

Not to be confused with the mythical “kirin” or “qilin” beast.

Score: 4/100

These two characters create a word in Chinese and Japanese that means something like benevolence with magnanimity or kindness with a forgiving nature.

If this describes you, then you are the type of person that I would like to call my friend.

This may not be the most common word in daily use, but it's old enough that it transcended cultures from China to Japan in the 5th century when Japan lacked a written language, and absorbed Chinese characters and words into their language.
Note: This is not commonly-used in Korean.

Score: 4/100

This is how to write "lioness" in Chinese.

Note: This is not a very common title for a wall scroll in China. Perhaps because lions are not indigenous to China. Though oddly enough, rarity of lions made them very prized - and lion dances are a popular festival attraction.
If you do see name of this species of animal written on a wall scroll, it's more likely to be the masculine form of "lion".

Score: 4/100

This is one of the Noble Eightfold Paths of Buddhism. Right Living, along with Right Speech and Right Action constitute the path to Virtue.

Right Living means that a Buddhist should only take a job or pursue a career in a field that does no harm. Buddhists should not work in the arms trade, as pimps or in the field of prostitution, as a butcher or in a shop that kills or sells meat, in a laboratory that does animal research, or any other business that involves scheming or unethical behavior.

Another definition: Avoidance of professions that are harmful to sentient beings, such as slaugterer, hunter, dealer in weaponry or narcotics, etc.

This term is exclusively used by devout Buddhists. It is not a common term, and is remains an unknown concept to most Japanese and Chinese people.

See Also...  Buddhism | Enlightenment

Score: 4/100

I will suppose you already know what a tiger is, so how about some trivia: If you look at the Japanese pronunciation, you might remember a movie called "Tora Tora Tora" which was the code word used to initiate the attack on Pearl Harbor. It simply means "Tiger Tiger Tiger".

In Chinese culture, the tiger is considered to be the king of all animals (in much the way we see the lion in western culture).

See Also...  Flying Tiger

Score: 10/100

This two-character word of Chinese origin means forgive or forgiveness. This is a deep kind of forgiveness from the bottom of your heart.

In a religious context, this is the kind of forgiveness that you beg God for.

In Korean Hanja, this can also be defined as forbearance or leniency.

In Japanese Kanji, beyond forgiveness, this can also mean magnanimity or generosity.

While we don't actively recommend Asian tattoos, this would be the forgiveness title which is best for a tattoo in most cases.

Note: The first character can also be written in the form shown to the right (especially in Japanese). If you have a preference, please let us know in the "special instructions" when you place your order.

Score: 4/100