Happy New Year in Chinese / Japanese...

百年好合 is a wish or greeting, often heard at Chinese weddings, for a couple to have 100 good years together.

Some will translate this more naturally into English as: “May you live a long and happy life together.”

The character breakdown:
百 = 100
年 = Years
好 = Good (Happy)
合 = Together

年年有餘 is a common proverb or wish of prosperity you'll hear around the time of Chinese New Year.

Directly translated character by character, it means “Year Year Have Surplus.” A more natural English translation including the deeper meaning would be “Every Year may you Have Abundance in your life.”

On a side note, this phrase often goes with a gift of something related to fish. This is because the last character, “yu” which means surplus or abundance, has exactly the same pronunciation in Mandarin as the word for “fish.”

This is also one of the most common titles for traditional paintings that feature koi fish.

In China, this phrase might make an odd wall scroll - a customer asked especially for this common phrase which is why it appears here. See my other abundance-related words if you want a wall scroll that will seem more comfortable in Chinese culture.

Note: This can be pronounced in Korean, but it's not a commonly used term.

See Also:  Prosperity | Good Fortune

樂天 is about being optimistic and also making the best of whatever life throws at you.

This is hard to define. One dictionary defines this as “acceptance of fate and happy about it.” There is one English word equivalent, which is sanguinity or sanguinary.

You can also say that this means “Be happy with whatever Heaven provides,” or “Find happiness in whatever fate Heaven bestows upon you.” 樂天 suggests being an optimist in life.

Note: This is sometimes a given name in China.

Please note that Japanese tend to write the first character in a slightly-different form (as seen to the right). Let us know if you have a preference when you place your order.

幸せである is a way to express the idea of “be happy” in Japanese.

Japanese grammar is far different than English, so the word order is the opposite of English. If you translated directly, you'd have something like “Happiness henceforth” or “Happiness hereafter.” The idea is to be happy from this moment on.

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

安貧樂道 means “It's better to be happy than rich” in Chinese.

Even if you are poor, you should still feel satisfied in your life...

...Satisfaction, happiness and the meaning of your life come from within yourself and not from money or riches of the world.

In Chinese, there are a lot of four-character proverbs which express some very old philosophies.
Though there are only four characters on this scroll, in Chinese, the meanings often surpass the dictionary definition of each character.

In this case, you should not set your expectations too high for the money or riches you wish to have. One who sets their expectations too high is almost always disappointed. Instead, you should cherish what you have, seek to improve yourself from within, and not measure your worth by the size of your bank account.

See Also:  A Sly Rabbit Will Have Three Openings to Its Den

This title is Buddha of Joyful Light.

歡喜光佛 is Amitābha from Sanskrit but pronounced very differently in Chinese and Japanese.

なんくるない or nankurunai is an Okinawan word, written in Japanese that means “Don't worry, be happy.”

沖縄/Okinawa and/or the 琉球/Ryūkyū Islands have a more laid-back “island style” approach to life. So the nankurunai idea is a perfect match for that lifestyle.

Note: Because this title is entirely Japanese Hiragana, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

樂 is a single-character form of happiness or bliss that holds the ideas of laughing and having a good time.

This can also be translated as happy, glad, enjoyable, fun, and sometimes, music.

This a really good character if your audience is Chinese.

This is not a word seen alone very often in Korean.

In Japanese, this character is written like the image shown to the right. If you order this from the Japanese master calligrapher, it will look like this instead of the character shown above.
Note: In Japanese, this has a meaning of comfort, ease, and enjoyment.

See Also:  Joyfulness

生日快樂 is how to write “Happy Birthday” in Chinese.

The first two characters mean “birthday,” and the second two characters mean “happiness,” or rather a wish for happiness.

Because a birthday only lasts one day per year, we strongly suggest that you find an appropriate and personal calligraphy gift that can be hung in the recipient's home year-round.

祝誕生日 is the shortest way to write “Happy Birthday” in Japanese.

The first Kanji means “wish” or “express good wishes,” and the last three characters mean “birthday.”

Because a birthday only lasts one day per year, we strongly suggest that you find an appropriate and personal calligraphy gift that can be hung in the recipient's home year-round.

誕生日おめでとう is a verbose way to write “Happy Birthday” in Japanese.

The first part says “birthday” and the last 5 Kanji mean “congratulations.”

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

和諧之家 means “harmonious family” or “happy family” in Chinese.

The first two characters relay the idea of happiness and harmony.
The third character is a connecting or possessive article (connects harmony/happiness to family).
The last character means family but can also mean home or household.

和やかな家庭 means “happy family” or “harmonious family” in Japanese.

The first three Kanji create a word that means mild, calm, gentle, quiet, or harmonious. After that is a connecting article. The last two Kanji mean family, home, or household.

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

歡笑 translates as “happy laughter.”

The first character means happy or happiness.
The second character means to laugh, laughter or smile.

夫婦円満 is a Japanese title that means matrimonial happiness or happy marriage.

If you translate this, you get, “Husband-wife circle complete.”

If you want to wish someone a happy new year, 新年快樂 is the way.

You can hang this up during Western New Years (Dec 31st - Jan 1st) and keep it up until after Chinese New Year which happens in either January or February of each year (it changes from year to year because China uses a lunar calendar).

欣 is the type of happiness that you feel on the inside. It is the feeling of being released and delighted as well as being in a state of contentment. 欣 is more the internal happiness that perhaps only shows by the smile on your face. It can also be translated as “to take pleasure in” or “to rejoice.”

Note: 欣 is often used in compound words - especially in Korean Hanja.
As Japanese Kanji, this is so rare, that most Japanese people are not aware of its existence.

See Also:  Happiness

新的開始 literally means “new beginning” in Chinese characters.

The character means “new.”

The second is a possessive article connecting the ideas of new & beginning.

The last two characters can mean “to begin,” “beginning,” “to start,” “initial,” “commencement,” or “initiation.”

伊始 is a short version of “new beginning” or simply “beginning” in Chinese characters.

You can also translate this as “from this moment on,” “starting now,” or “henceforth.”

In the day-to-day speech, this word can apply to starting a new job, beginning a new career, entering a new chapter of your life, or taking a new position (in politics, scholarship, etc.).

新たな始まり is a Japanese word that means “new beginning” or “new start.”

Here's the character breakdown:
新た (arata) = new; fresh; novel; newly; freshly; or this can be like the prefix “re-” like “re-start” or “reset.”
な (na) is kind of a connecting article. This glues “new” to “beginning.”
始まり (hajimari) = origin; beginning.

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

事始め is a Japanese word that means taking up a new line of work or the beginning of new things.

In another context, it can refer to starting the preparations for New Year's festivities or resuming work after the New Year's vacation.

新しい始め is a verbose Japanese phrase that means “new beginning.”

The first three characters mean new, novel, fresh, recent, latest, up-to-date, or modern.

The last two characters mean beginning, start outset, opening, or origin.

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

This is the Chinese name for the country of New Caledonia (overseas territory of France).

See Also:  North America

ニューカレドニア島 is the Japanese name for the island of New Caledonia.

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

This is New Guinea in Japanese Katakana.

Note: Because this title is entirely Japanese Katakana, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

新生 literally means “new life” or “new birth” in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

Depending on the context, this word can also mean newborn, new student, rebirth, new birth, or nascent.
In Japanese, this can be the given name Wakaki.

Note: This is not the most common word selection for a calligraphy wall scroll. But if you’re a westerner, you can bend the rules a bit.

This literally means “new life” or “new livelihood” in Japanese Kanji.

新生活 is most appropriate if you are starting a new career or otherwise are starting a new chapter in your life or a new beginning.

Note: This is not the most common word selection for a calligraphy wall scroll. But if you’re a westerner, you can bend the rules a bit.

紐約 is how to write New York in Chinese.

紐約 is also the old way New York was written in Japanese.

Just as with English, this may refer to the city or the state of New York.

ニューヨーク is how New York is written in Japanese Katakana.

Note: Because this title is entirely Japanese Katakana, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

This is the Chinese name used in Mainland China for the country of New Zealand.

Note: There are two common titles for New Zealand. Just the first character changes but you might see the other title in Taiwan and Singapore.

Japanese note: This is an archaic way to write New Zealand in Japanese Kanji. In modern times, it’s written ニュージーランド (same pronunciation but using Katakana characters).

See Also:  Australia | Oceania

This is New Zealand in Japanese Katakana.

Note: Because this title is entirely Japanese Katakana, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

This is the Chinese name used in Taiwan for the country of New Zealand.

See Also:  Australia | Oceania

新月 literally means new moon.

This can also refer to a crescent moon or the first lunar phase that occurs every 29.53 days.

In Japanese, this can be the female given names Wakatsuki, Nidzuki, or Nitsuki. It can also be the surnames Shintsuki, Shingetsu, or Aratsuki.

溫故知新 is a proverb from Confucius that is used in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean cultures.

It can be translated in several ways:
Coming up with new ideas based on things learned in the past.
Examine things of the past, and obtain new knowledge.
Developing new ideas based on the study of the past.
Gain new insights through restudying old issues.
Understand the present by reviewing the past.
Learning from the past.
Review the old and know the new.
Taking a lesson from the past.
Taking a lesson from the wisdom of the ancients.
Follow the old ways.

The direct translation would be, “By asking old things, know new things.”
The Character meanings breakdown this way:
溫故 = ask old
知新 = know new

Explained: To learn new things that are outside of your experience, you can learn from old things of the past. You can find wisdom in history.

VS.

Note: Japanese use a variant of the first Kanji in modern times.
Therefore if you order this from a Japanese calligrapher, expect the first Kanji to look like 温 instead of 溫.

In addition to 温故知新 as mentioned above, this is sometimes written as 温古知新 in Japan.

パプアニューギニア is Papua new Guinea in Japanese Katakana.

Note: Because this title is entirely Japanese Katakana, it should be written by a Japanese calligrapher.

紐幾內亞 is the short name for New Guinea or Papua-New Guinea in Chinese (Mandarin).

巴布亞新幾內亞 is the full name of Papua New Guinea in Chinese (Mandarin - Mainland).

In Taiwan, they use a similar version, 巴布亞紐幾內亞 (just the 4th character differs).

幸せな偶然 is one of many ways to express serendipity in Japanese.

The first two characters mean happiness, good fortune, luck, or blessing.

In the middle is a Japanese Hiragana character connecting these words/ideas.

The last two Kanji mean incidentally, by chance, randomly, unexpectedly, suddenly, accident, fortuity, or by coincidence.

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

水兔年 means water rabbit year.

This happens to be the combination in the 60-year cycle for the year 2023, starting on Feb 4th, 2023.

癸卯 is the designation for the 40th year of the 60-year or sexagenary cycle, e.g. 1903, 1963, or 2023.

This is the year of the Water Rabbit. The characters here designate the year in a special way, but do not literally mean water and rabbit.

The 60 year cycle has 5 elements and 12 animals. As each cycles every year, the math works out to 5 x 12 = 60.