Buy an 不屈 calligraphy wall scroll here!
Personalize your custom “不屈” project by clicking the button next to your favorite “不屈” title below...
1. Indomitable / Persistence / Fortitude
6. Indomitable Spirit / Indomitable Attitude
不屈 is the short form of a longer Chinese word and also a word used in Korean and Japanese to express the idea of being indomitable. It literally means “will not bend,” “will not crouch,” “will not yield,” “will not flinch,” or “will not submit.”
Note: Some will translate this as “indomitable spirit”; however, technically, there is no character to suggest the idea of “spirit” in this word.
Rather die than compromise
寧死不屈 is often translated as “Death Before Dishonor.”
The literal translation is more like, “Better die than compromise.” The last two characters mean “not to bend” or “not to bow down.” Some might even say that it means “not to surrender.” Thus, you could say this proverb means “Better to die than live on my knees” or simply “no surrender” (with the real idea being that you would rather die than surrender).
不撓不屈 is a Japanese and Korean word that means tenacity, indomitableness, or dauntlessness.
不屈不撓 means “Indomitable” or “Unyielding.”
不屈不撓 is a long word by Chinese standards. At least, it is often translated as a single word into English. It's actually a proverb in Chinese.
If you want to break it down, you can see that the first and third characters are the same. Both mean “not” (they work as a suffix to make a negative or opposite meaning to whatever character follows).
The second character means “bendable.”
The last means “scratched” or “bothered.”
So this really means “Won't be bent, can't be bothered.” I have also seen it written as “Will not crouch, will not submit.” This comes from the fact that the second character can mean “to crouch” and the last can mean “to submit” (as in “to give in” such as “submitting to the rule of someone else”). This may explain better why these four characters mean “indomitable.”
Notes:
Some will translate this as “indomitable spirit”; however, technically, there is no character to suggest the idea of “spirit” in this word.
Other translations include indefatigability, indomitableness, or unremitting tenacity.
The first two characters can be stand-alone words in Chinese.
In Japanese, this is considered two words (with very similar meanings). It's more common to see the word order flipped to 不撓不屈 in Japanese.
The same characters are used in old Korean Hanja. Just like in Japanese, the words are swapped to 不撓不屈 creating a word pronounced “불요불굴” in Korean.
See 不撓不屈
Korean Only
百折不屈 is a Korean proverb that means “indomitable spirit,” at least, that is the way it is commonly translated in martial arts circles (Taekwondo, Hapkido, etc.).
The literal translation is “[one] hundred [times] broken [still] don't succumb.”
Or more naturally translated, “Even if attacked/beaten one hundred times, still be undaunted/indomitable.”
Notes:
Some will say this is one long word rather than a proverb.
This is also a proverb/word in Chinese though rarely used in modern times.
Fukutsu no Seishin
谦逊正直温柔忍耐克己不屈 are the virtues used by Choi Kwang Do Martial Arts.
English | Hanja | Hangul | Pronunciation |
1. Humility (Humble / Modesty) | 謙遜 | 겸손 | gyeom son |
2. Honesty (Integrity) | 正直 | 정직 | jeong jig |
3. Gentleness | 溫柔 | 온유 | on yu |
4. Perseverance (To Endure) | 忍耐 | 인내 | in nae |
5. Self-Control (Self-Restraint) | 克己 | 극기 | geug gi |
6. Unbreakable Spirit (Unyielding / Unbending) | 不屈 | 불굴 | bur gur |
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).
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).
General Choi's original calligraphy is shown to the right. Your custom calligraphy will be unique, and not an exact match, as each calligrapher has their own style.Traditional Korean Hanja | Modern Korean Hangul | Pronunciation | English |
跆拳道精神 | 태권도정신 | tae gweon do jeong sin | Taekwondo Spirit |
禮儀 | 예의 | ye yi | Courtesy / Etiquette / Propriety / Decorum / Formality |
廉耻 | 염치 | yeom ci | Integrity / Sense of Honor |
忍耐 | 인내 | in nae | Patience / Perseverance / Endurance |
克己 | 극기 | geug gi | Self-Control / Self-Denial / Self-Abnegation |
百折不屈 | 백절불굴 | baeg jeor bur gur | Indomitable Spirit (Undaunted even after repeated attacks from the opponent) |
Note that the pronunciation is the official version now used in South Korea. However, it is different than what you may be used to. For instance, “Taekwon-do” is “tae gweon do.” This new romanization is supposed to be closer to actual Korean pronunciation. |
廉耻精進忍耐遵守克己謙遜百折不屈 are the tenets of Tang Soo Do.
English | Old Hanja | Modern Hangul | Pronunciation |
1. Integrity | 廉耻 | 렴치 or 염치 | yeom ci |
2. Concentration | 精進 | 정진 | jeong jin |
3. Perseverance | 忍耐 | 인내 | in nae |
4. Respect & Obedience | 遵守 | 준수 | jun su |
5. Self-Control | 克己 | 극기 | geug gi |
6. Humility | 謙遜 | 겸손 | gyeom son |
7. Indomitable Spirit | 百折不屈 | 백절불굴 | baeg jeor bur gur |
After some research, it appears this list was compiled in English based on Taekwondo tenets. We filled in a few of the words that did not have a corresponding Hanja or Hangul. If someone else has a better list with characters included, please contact me.
Below are some entries from our dictionary that may match your 不屈 search...
Characters If shown, 2nd row is Simp. Chinese |
Pronunciation Romanization |
Simple Dictionary Definition |
不屈 see styles |
bù qū bu4 qu1 pu ch`ü pu chü fukutsu ふくつ |
More info & calligraphy: Indomitable / Persistence / Fortitude(n,adj-no,adj-na) persistence; fortitude; indomitability |
不屈不撓 不屈不挠 see styles |
bù qū bù náo bu4 qu1 bu4 nao2 pu ch`ü pu nao pu chü pu nao fukutsufutou / fukutsufuto ふくつふとう |
More info & calligraphy: Indomitable / Unyielding(yoji) indefatigability; indomitableness; with unremitting tenacity |
不撓不屈 see styles |
futoufukutsu / futofukutsu ふとうふくつ |
More info & calligraphy: Tenacity / Indomitable |
寧死不屈 宁死不屈 see styles |
nìng sǐ bù qū ning4 si3 bu4 qu1 ning ssu pu ch`ü ning ssu pu chü |
More info & calligraphy: Death Before Surrender |
堅強不屈 坚强不屈 see styles |
jiān qiáng bù qū jian1 qiang2 bu4 qu1 chien ch`iang pu ch`ü chien chiang pu chü |
staunch and unyielding (idiom); steadfast |
堅貞不屈 坚贞不屈 see styles |
jiān zhēn bù qū jian1 zhen1 bu4 qu1 chien chen pu ch`ü chien chen pu chü |
faithful and unchanging (idiom); steadfast |
威武不屈 see styles |
wēi wǔ bù qū wei1 wu3 bu4 qu1 wei wu pu ch`ü wei wu pu chü |
not to submit to force |
The following table may be helpful for those studying Chinese or Japanese...
Title | Characters | Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Romanized Chinese | |
Indomitable Persistence Fortitude | 不屈 | fukutsu | bù qū / bu4 qu1 / bu qu / buqu | pu ch`ü / puchü / pu chü |
Death Before Surrender | 寧死不屈 宁死不屈 | níng sǐ bù qū ning2 si3 bu4 qu1 ning si bu qu ningsibuqu | ning ssu pu ch`ü ningssupuchü ning ssu pu chü |
|
Tenacity Indomitable | 不撓不屈 | fu tou fu kutsu futoufukutsu fu to fu kutsu | ||
Indomitable Unyielding | 不屈不撓 不屈不挠 | fu kutsu fu tou fukutsufutou fu kutsu fu to | bù qū bù náo bu4 qu1 bu4 nao2 bu qu bu nao buqubunao | pu ch`ü pu nao puchüpunao pu chü pu nao |
Indomitable Spirit | 百折不屈 | bǎi shé bù qū bai3 she2 bu4 qu1 bai she bu qu baishebuqu | pai she pu ch`ü paishepuchü pai she pu chü |
|
Indomitable Spirit Indomitable Attitude | 不屈の精神 | fu kutsu no sei shin fukutsunoseishin | ||
Korean CKD Virtues | 謙遜正直溫柔忍耐克己不屈 谦逊正直温柔忍耐克己不屈 | qiān xùn zhèng zhí wēn róu rěn nài kè jǐ bù qū qian1 xun4 zheng4 zhi2 wen1 rou2 ren3 nai4 ke4 ji3 bu4 qu1 qian xun zheng zhi wen rou ren nai ke ji bu qu | ch`ien hsün cheng chih wen jou jen nai k`o chi pu ch`ü chien hsün cheng chih wen jou jen nai ko chi pu chü |
|
Taekwondo Tenets Spirit of Taekwon-do | 跆拳道精神禮義廉耻忍耐克己百折不屈 跆拳道精神礼义廉耻忍耐克己百折不屈 | tái quán dào jīng shén lǐ yì lián chǐ rěn nài kè jǐ bǎi zhé bù qū tai2 quan2 dao4 jing1 shen2 li3 yi4 lian2 chi3 ren3 nai4 ke4 ji3 bai3 zhe2 bu4 qu1 tai quan dao jing shen li yi lian chi ren nai ke ji bai zhe bu qu | t`ai ch`üan tao ching shen li i lien ch`ih jen nai k`o chi pai che pu ch`ü tai chüan tao ching shen li i lien chih jen nai ko chi pai che pu chü |
|
Tang Soo Do Tenets | 廉耻精進忍耐遵守克己謙遜百折不屈 / 廉恥精進忍耐遵守克己謙遜百折不屈 廉耻精进忍耐遵守克己谦逊百折不屈 | lián chǐ jīng jìn rěn nài zūn shǒu kè jǐ qiān xùn bǎi zhé bù qū lian2 chi3 jing1 jin4 ren3 nai4 zun1 shou3 ke4 ji3 qian1 xun4 bai3 zhe2 bu4 qu1 lian chi jing jin ren nai zun shou ke ji qian xun bai zhe bu qu | lien ch`ih ching chin jen nai tsun shou k`o chi ch`ien hsün pai che pu ch`ü lien chih ching chin jen nai tsun shou ko chi chien hsün pai che pu chü |
|
In some entries above you will see that characters have different versions above and below a line. In these cases, the characters above the line are Traditional Chinese, while the ones below are Simplified Chinese. |
Successful Chinese Character and Japanese Kanji calligraphy searches within the last few hours...
All of our calligraphy wall scrolls are handmade.
When the calligrapher finishes creating your artwork, it is taken to my art mounting workshop in Beijing where a wall scroll is made by hand from a combination of silk, rice paper, and wood.
After we create your wall scroll, it takes at least two weeks for air mail delivery from Beijing to you.
Allow a few weeks for delivery. Rush service speeds it up by a week or two for $10!
When you select your calligraphy, you'll be taken to another page where you can choose various custom options.
The wall scroll that Sandy is holding in this picture is a "large size"
single-character wall scroll.
We also offer custom wall scrolls in small, medium, and an even-larger jumbo size.
Professional calligraphers are getting to be hard to find these days.
Instead of drawing characters by hand, the new generation in China merely type roman letters into their computer keyboards and pick the character that they want from a list that pops up.
There is some fear that true Chinese calligraphy may become a lost art in the coming years. Many art institutes in China are now promoting calligraphy programs in hopes of keeping this unique form
of art alive.
Even with the teachings of a top-ranked calligrapher in China, my calligraphy will never be good enough to sell. I will leave that to the experts.
The same calligrapher who gave me those lessons also attracted a crowd of thousands and a TV crew as he created characters over 6-feet high. He happens to be ranked as one of the top 100 calligraphers in all of China. He is also one of very few that would actually attempt such a feat.
Check out my lists of Japanese Kanji Calligraphy Wall Scrolls and Old Korean Hanja Calligraphy Wall Scrolls.