Be Happy in Chinese / Japanese...

xīn

kin

흔

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 a more 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

Shiawa se de a ru

幸せである is a way to express the idea, "be happy" in Japanese.

Japanese grammar is far different than English, so the word order is kind of the opposite of English. If you translated directly, you'd have something like, "Happiness hence forth," or "Happiness hereafter." Basically, 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.

ān pín lè dào

안빈낙도

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 amount to 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, and seek to improve yourself from within, and not measure your personal worth by the size of your bank account.

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

huān xiào

歡笑 translates as "happy laughter."

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

lè

raku

락 or 악

樂 / 楽 is a single-character form of happiness or bliss that holds the ideas of laughing and having a good time. It can also be translated as happy, glad, enjoyable, fun, and sometimes, music.

This a really good character if your audience is Chinese.

樂 / 楽 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

yú

yu

유

愉 can be defined as pleasure, well-pleased, contented, and happy.

Note: 愉 is no longer in common use in Japanese.

See Also:  Passion

nago ya ka na ka tei

This 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.

bǎi nián hǎo hé

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

hé xié zhī jiā

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.

lè tiān

raku ten

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

樂天 / 楽天 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: 樂天 / 楽天 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.

xīn nián kuài lè

If you want to wish someone a happy new year this is the way.

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

huān xǐ guāng fó

kan gi kou butsu

This title is Buddha of Joyful Light.

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

shiawa se na guu zen

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 that serves to connect these words/ideas together.

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.

xǐ

囍 is a common gift for Chinese couples getting married or newly married couples.

As we say in the west, "Two heads are better than one" Well, in the east, two "happinesses" are certainly better than one.

Some will suggest this is a symbol of two happinesses coming together. Others see it as a multiplication of happiness because of the union or marriage.

囍 is not really a character that is pronounced very often - it's almost exclusively used in written form. However, if pressed, most Chinese people will pronounce this "shuang xi" (double happy) although literally there are two "xi" characters combined in this calligraphy (but nobody will say "xi xi").

If you select this character, I strongly suggest the festive bright red paper for your calligraphy. Part of my suggestion comes from the fact that red is a good luck color in China, and this will add to the sentiment that you wish to convey with this scroll to the happy couple.

zhuī xún xìng fú

追尋幸福 is the best way to translate the English phrase "pursuit of happiness" into Chinese.

The first two characters mean "to pursue," "to track down," or "to search for."

The last two mean happiness, happy, or blessed.

See Also:  Follow Your Dreams

xìng

saki / sachi / rei / rē

행

幸 can mean happiness, good fortune, good luck, and in the old days, good harvest or bounty.

Note: From Japanese, this character is sometimes romanized as "sachi," and is often pronounced "kou" or sometimes "rei" when used in compound words with other Kanji.

ko fuku

鼓腹 means happiness and contentment in Japanese Kanji.

The first Kanji represents your internal beat or drum.
The second Kanji represents your mind and body.
Together, it suggests that your internal rhythm or beat is regular, soothing, and at proper tempo.

See Also:  Satisfaction | Pleasure | Well-Being

mǎn zú

man zoku

만족

滿足 / 満足 is the kind of happiness that involves being satisfied and content.

This can also suggest the actions of "to satisfy," "to meet the needs of."

Other single-word definitions include: satisfaction; contentment; sufficient; enough; adequate; full; complete.

In Japanese, the Kanji for this word is an alternate Chinese form. You can see and select this version at the right (recommended only if your audience is specifically Japanese).

See Also:  Satisfaction | Contentment | Pleasure | Well-Being

xìng fú

koufuku

행복

幸福 is a general state of "happiness" which can also be translated as truly-blessed, welfare, well-being, or fortunate.

koufuku o motome te

幸福を求めて is "Pursuit of Happiness" or "In Search of Happiness" in Japanese.

Here's how the characters break down:
幸福 (koufuku) happiness; blessedness; joy; well-being.
を (o) particle
求め (motome) to want; to seek; to pursue; to request
て (te) particle

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

See Also:  Follow Your Dreams

xìng fú chéng gōng de yì shēng

This means, "A life of happiness and prosperity" or "A life of happiness and success."

It's a great and very positive and inspirational wall scroll selection.

See Also:  Prosperity

huān

kan

환

歡 means joyous, happy, delight, and pleased.

歡 represents an external happiness that may have you clapping and cheering.

Please note: The other happiness/joyful which looks like "喜" is more popular.

歡 is the ancient/old version in China and Japan. After WWII in Japan, they started using 歓. Just let us know if you want this modern version instead of the ancient one.

See Also:  Happiness

xǐ

ki / yorokobi

희

喜 is the Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and Korean Hanja for the kind of happiness known in the west as "joy."

喜 can also be translated as rejoice, enjoyment, delighted, pleased, or "take pleasure in." Sometimes it can mean, "to be fond of" (in a certain context).

If you write two of these happiness/joy characters side by side, you create another character known in English as "double happiness," which is a symbol associated with weddings and a happy marriage.

There is another version of this character that you will find on our website with an additional radical on the left side (exactly same meaning, just an alternate form). The version of happiness shown here is the commonly written form in China, Japan and South Korea (banned in North Korea).

See Also:  Contentment | Happiness | Joy

kuài lè

kai raku

쾌락

Joyfulness is an inner sense of peace and happiness. You appreciate the gifts each day brings. Without joyfulness, when the fun stops, our happiness stops. Joy can carry us through the hard times even when we are feeling very sad.

快樂 can also mean pleasure, enjoyment, delight, cheerful, or merry. In some ways, this is the essence that makes someone to be perceived as a charming person.

See Also:  Happiness

kou fuku to ha nei no jin sei

This Japanese proverb means, "A life of happiness and prosperity" or "A life of happiness and success."

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

See Also:  Prosperity

jin sei ou ka

人生謳歌 means, "live for what you love" in Japanese.

The first two characters mean "human life" or simply "living." The last two characters mean, "merit," "prosperity," or "what you enjoy." This phrase can suggest working or staying busy for your own goals (in your career).

See Also:  Prosperity

xiào ài shēng huó

In English, the word order shown in the title is the most natural or popular. In Chinese, the natural order is a little different:

The first character means laugh (sometimes means smile).

The second character means love.

The last two characters mean "live" as in "to be alive" or "pursue life."

Please note: 笑愛生活 is not a normal phrase, in that it does not have a subject, verb, and object. It is a word list. Word lists are not common in Asian languages/grammar (at least not as normal as they are in English). We only added this entry because so many people requested it.

We put the characters in the order shown above, as it almost makes a single word with the meaning, "A life of laughter and love." It's a made-up word but it sounds good in Chinese.

We removed the Japanese pronunciation guide from this entry, as the professional Japanese translator deemed it "near nonsense" from a Japanese perspective. Choose this only if your audience is Chinese and you want the fewest-possible characters to express this idea.

In Korean, this would be 소애생활 or "so ae saeng hwar" but I have not confirmed that this makes sense in Korean.

ai to warai no seikatsu

Because a word list of "Live Laugh Love" is not natural in Japanese, this takes the concept and incorporates it into a proper phrase.

This can be translated as, "A life of love and laughter" or "Live life with love and laughter."

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