I feel that a lot of Americans think that Chinese characters are beautiful and want to get tattoos of Chinese characters, but PLEASE make sure you know the meaning of the characters, and consult with a native speaker, before you get a tattoo of it. As a result of some people’s poor choice of characters/words, I’ve seen some funny Chinese tattoos.
One day, while I was in a bus on the way to school, I saw this tattoo on a guy: Translated to English, this tattoo literally means “Friend = Family.” However, “家族” doesn’t just mean family member, it means your WHOLE family, including your aunts and uncles, your cousins, your nieces and nephews… everyone in your extended family. It just doesn’t look correct for people who understand Chinese. It’s like saying ‘a friend equals my entire family.’ I thought that was funny, but maybe it’s a cultural thing.
I saw this tattoo when I went to Disney World in Florida. Translated to English, this tattoo means, ”to rise from the dead”. In Chinese culture, we usually use this phrase to describe a doctor who treats his patients with excellent skill, but we seldom use this idiom. I posted this picture on my Facebook, and one of my friends left a comment saying,” Did you tell her she is a zombie?” Again, you have to understand Chinese culture to fully get why it’s so weird.
This tattoo means, “crazy diarrhea”. I laughed so hard when I saw this tattoo online!
Overall, if you want to get a tattoo of Chinese characters, it’s probably best that you really research those characters and phrases, and talk to someone who knows Chinese, before getting them. However, if you really want to get ‘crazy diarrhea’ as a tattoo, I will not stop you from doing so.
This is a great post and blog altogether. The story arch you created was executed perfectly. I actually laughed at loud at the third example. Your tone could have come of as making fun of these people, but you didn't and I think that was a great choice you made.
ReplyDeleteI really like this blog idea. I have a lot of tattoos as well and always have to defend them and it gets annoying. I agree that not all tattoos need to have this giant meaning behind them. The chinese symbols are hilarious, good thing I don't have any of those!
ReplyDeleteI really like how you brought your culture into this blog post. Chinese symbols are big in the tattoo industry and I never thought of the cultural meaning besides the literal meaning. It makes a lot of sense to me now though. I don't have any tattoos, but I would love to get one someday. But for me it does have to have a lot of meaning to me, but I love other people's tattoos and hearing the stories behind them.
ReplyDeleteThis is hilarious! I find myself have came across not well thought out tattoos. This blog is great because you translate for us what the tattoos read. Honestly, when I come across Chinese characters in tattoos I have no idea what they mean. Most people don't do the research. I've seen a few misspelled phrases on peoples tattoos. Great idea. Keep posting!
ReplyDeleteThis is so funny because at my part-time job, I do airbrush tattoos and we have Chinese characters too. Everyone always asks me if I know what they REALLY say. We have "水” listed down as "ocean", but I know it just means "water". Sometimes I don't bother to tell customers. However, if they were real tattoos, I think I would tell them the truth. But, now I know who to ask if I ever plan on getting a tatoo!
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