Japanese Government in Japanese...

無政府 is a Chinese and Japanese word for anarchy.

This literally reads “without government.”

台灣 is the Chinese name for the Republic of China which is more commonly known as Taiwan.

The island of Taiwan is actually considered a renegade province of mainland China. It became the last holdout of the former government of China after Chairman Mao took power during the revolution that followed WWII.

Note: There are a few ways to write Taiwan: 台湾 / 薹灣 / 台灣.

If you need a certain version, just let me know in the "Special Instructions" tab when you order.

See Also:  Asia

If you are a government spy, engaged in business espionage, or in some military intelligence department, 情報 is both the title of what you are doing and what you are collecting about your enemy.

It is suggestive by itself of military intelligence but applies to corporate intelligence if you are keeping an eye on your competition in business.

剣聖 can be translated as “Sword Saint,” “God of the Sword,” or “Saint of the Sword.” This is an ancient Japanese title bestowed on a master with the greatest of skills in swordsmanship.

Keep in mind that this is an antiquated term. It will only be understood in the context of martial arts. The pronunciation “kensei” also applies to other words like “constitutional government” and power (these words have different kanji and are completely unrelated).

Notes: This is sometimes Romanized as “kensei,” “ken sei,” and incorrectly as “Kensai.”

Chinese Note: This title is pronounceable in Chinese but seldom, if ever, used in Chinese. Also, the first character is an alternate character form for a sword, currently only used in Japan.

公安 is the Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja title for (The Ministry of) Public Security. 公安 can also generally mean public safety, public security, or public welfare. It is a positive term in Japan, where some even name their daughters “Kouan” (this title).

In China, this is the kinder name for the PSB or Public Security Bureau. It's really the national police of China - occasionally brutal and seldom properly-trained or educated. Once in a while, you find a PSB officer who lives up to the title of 公安. Before the 1989 massacre, it was the PSB officers who refused to stop nor kill any of the protesting college students (so they're not all bad). The Chinese government had to call in soldiers from Inner Mongolia to kill thousands of protesters.

西藏 is the Chinese and Japanese name for Tibet.

It is a vast area in southwest China for which the Chinese government has little control (except in the capital of Llasa). During your travels in Tibet (outside of Llasa) you will find it is rough country full of ruthless bandits and honorable and upright Living Buddhas. There are about 2000 Living Buddhas in Tibet, and at least 10 times more bandits ready to ambush you on the road or trail.

On the eastern frontier of Tibet, you will find the place designated to be Shangri-la. It's a friendly village of Tibetans and is the gateway to greater Tibet.

The full official Chinese name is Tibet Autonomous Region or 西藏自治區|西藏自治区. The name here, 西藏 is quite old - from several dynasties ago.

See Also:  China | Nepal | Asia

上帝 is how Chinese Christians and Jews refer to God, AKA The Judeo-Christian God.

There are Chinese Jews whose ancestry dates back to Jewish traders on the silk road. They are known as the Kaifeng Jews. Most have left China for Israel now.

There are also plenty of Christians in China of the Protestant and Catholic varieties. However, the churches are basically run by the government, and the Chinese Catholic church does not recognize the Pope.

Oddly, in my experience, I found the Chinese Protestant church to be much less political compared to Baptist and other Protestant churches that I have visited in America.

上帝 is also the typically-used title for God in Japanese.

While you may find this term in old Korean dictionaries, it is an obscure and rarely-used title for God in modern Korean.

See Also:  Christianity | Jesus Christ

唐手道 is the alternate title for Karate-do.

This title uses a character, 唐, which represents the Tang Dynasty of China. Thus, this is often translated as the “Tang Hand Way” or incorrectly, “Tang Fist Way.”
I have also seen some call it “China Hand Way.”
Many in Korea refer to and romanize these characters as “Tang Soo Do” (당수도) where these characters refer to a kind of Korean style of Karate.

There is not a lot of information on this title but some believe that a simplified form of Kung Fu that started in China and ended up very popular in Japan used this title initially. It was later changed in Japan to a different Karate title which means “Empty Hand” (as in, without weapons).

Note: When used in Korean, this is pronounced 당수도. This title is often romanized as “Tang Soo Do,” “Tangsudo,” “Dang Su Do,” or “Dangsudo.” The last two romanizations on that list are the official Korean government romanization, though martial arts schools tend to use other non-standard versions.

将軍 or Shogun, in the simplest definition, is a General, but you could also use words such as commander, lord, overlord, highest ranking, or commanding officer.

The title “Shogun” has held some slightly ambiguous meanings at times in Japanese history.

In the west, when someone mentions “Shogun,” we may be filled with thoughts of gallant warriors. Some might even think of the TV mini-series with Richard Chamberlain. Often westerners use the words, Samurai and Shogun interchangeably, but that's really not technically correct. In the case of the Samurai, the Shogun was a designated (by the emperor) leader of a gild of Samurai. In this context, the Shogun was a Samurai lord. Or effectively, a commanding officer of a company of Samurai - to put it in modern military terms.

Sometimes a Shogun was a general; other times, he was the leader of a military government in Japan - but not a front-line warrior like a Samurai.

Variants of the same characters are used in China for the rank and title of a General of the People's Liberation Army (and the same term and characters have been used for the last 2200 years since the Qin Dynasty).

百折不撓 is a Chinese proverb that means “Be undaunted in the face of repeated setbacks.”

More directly translated, it reads, “[Overcome] a hundred setbacks, without flinching.” 百折不撓 is of Chinese origin but is commonly used in Japanese and somewhat in Korean (same characters, different pronunciation).

This proverb comes from a long, and occasionally tragic story of a man that lived sometime around 25-220 AD. His name was Qiao Xuan, and he never stooped to flattery but remained an upright person at all times. He fought to expose the corruption of higher-level government officials at great risk to himself.

Then when he was at a higher level in the Imperial Court, bandits were regularly capturing hostages and demanding ransoms. But when his own son was captured, he was so focused on his duty to the Emperor and the common good that he sent a platoon of soldiers to raid the bandits' hideout, and stop them once and for all even at the risk of his own son's life. While all of the bandits were arrested in the raid, they killed Qiao Xuan's son at first sight of the raiding soldiers.

Near the end of his career, a new Emperor came to power, and Qiao Xuan reported to him that one of his ministers was bullying the people and extorting money from them. The new Emperor refused to listen to Qiao Xuan and even promoted the corrupt Minister. Qiao Xuan was so disgusted that in protest, he resigned from his post as minister (something almost never done) and left for his home village.

His tombstone reads “Bai Zhe Bu Nao” which is now a proverb used in Chinese culture to describe a person of strong will who puts up stubborn resistance against great odds.

My Chinese-English dictionary defines these 4 characters as “keep on fighting despite all setbacks,” “be undaunted by repeated setbacks,” and “be indomitable.”

Our translator says it can mean “never give up” in modern Chinese.

Although the first two characters are translated correctly as “repeated setbacks,” the literal meaning is “100 setbacks” or “a rope that breaks 100 times.” The last two characters can mean “do not yield” or “do not give up.”
Most Chinese, Japanese, and Korean people will not take this absolutely literal meaning but will instead understand it as the title suggests above. If you want a single big word definition, it would be indefatigability, indomitableness, persistence, or unyielding.

See Also:  Tenacity | Fortitude | Strength | Perseverance | Persistence