Nippon Shorin-Ryu in Chinese / Japanese...

日本小林流 is the Japanese title Nippon Shorin-ryu.

少林寺流 is the Japanese martial arts title “Shorin-ji-ryu.”

Though the first part of the title comes from the Shaolin temple in China. In Japan, this refers to an Okinawa school of karate.

Note: Sometimes, this title is written without the “ji” or “temple” Kanji.

小林流翔武館 is the title, Shorin-Ryu Shobukan meaning “Little Forest Style - Soaring Warrior House” in Japanese.

There is more than one version of Shorin-Ryu and Shobukan, so make sure the characters here match the ones used at your dojo.

小林流志道館 is the Japanese title Shorin-ryu Shidōkan.

少林流 is the Japanese martial arts title “Shorin-ryu.”

Though the first part of the title comes from the Shaolin (small forest) monks of China.
In Japan, this refers to the Okinawa School of Karate.

Note that often in Japanese, the first Kanji of this title was changed to the version shown to the right. If you prefer this version, please click on the Kanji to the right instead of the button above.

松村少林流 is the Japanese martial arts title “Matsumura Shorin-ryu.”

剛柔流 is the title of the Goju-Ryu or Gōjū-Ryū school/style of Karate or Japanese martial arts.

Sometimes romanized as Gojo-Ryu or Gojoryu, though technically, it should be Gōjū-Ryū (the accents indicating long vowel sounds like “gou juu ryuu”).

大東流 is Daitō-ryū, a Japanese martial art style - usually associated with Aikido.

玄制流 is the Japanese title for the Genseiryū or Gensei-Ryū style of Karate.

上地流 or Uechi-Ryū is the short name for a traditional style of Okinawan karate.

Uechi-Ryū is named after its creator, Kanbun Uechi. Uechi was an Okinawan man who left at the age of 19 for China to study Chinese martial arts and medicine.

The meaning of this title is “Uechi Flow,” “Uechi Style,” or “Uechi School.” Although, the name 上地 or Uechi can mean “higher stages of practice” in the Buddhist context. Therefore, you can stretch the meaning to be “Higher-Stages-of-Practice Style.”

無雙直傳英信流 is the traditional or old way to write the Japanese martial arts title, Musō Jikiden Eishin-Ryū (iaido style).

In modern Japanese, the second and fourth Kanji are different, making them 無双直伝英信流.

Musō Jikiden Eishin-Ryū is arguably the most renowned Japanese sword art school, with a history dating back to the early 1600s.

大東流合気柔術 is Daitō-Ryū Aiki-jūjutsu, a Japanese martial art established by Takeda Sōkaku.

The most famous student of Daitō-Ryū Aiki-jūjutsu is Morihei Ueshiba who later founded the school or branch of martial arts known as Aikido.

Note: 大東流合気柔術 can also be romanized as Daito-ryu Aiki-Jujutsu, Daitou-Ryuu Aiki-Juujutsu or Daito-Ryu Aiki-Jujitsu.

無双直伝英信流 is the modern way to write the Japanese martial arts term, Musō Jikiden Eishin-Ryū (iaido style).

Sometimes the second Kanji is written as 雙, and the fourth Kanji is written 傳, making the full title 無雙直傳英信流. See the other version of this title if you want that traditional version.

日本拳法 is the title for Nippon Kempo, Japanese Kempo, Nihon Kempo, or Nippon Kenpo.

While Kempo or Kenpo is already a Japanese term, this has the word “Japan” (Nippon) to drive home the fact that this refers to the Japanese martial art of Kenpo.

日本空手協会 is the title for Nippon Karate Kyokai in Japanese Kanji.

This is the Chinese and Japanese Kanji name for the country of Japan.

日 means sun and 本 means origin. That is how Japan is known as the land of the rising sun (literally the place where the sun originates from).

See Also:  Asia

日本空手道玄武會 is the title for Nippon Karate-Do Genbu-Kai.
A Japanese karate association of the Genbu school.

Note that while this title does make perfect sense in Chinese, it is really a Japanese title. In fact, the first word is “Japanese/Japan.”

If you’d like your martial arts school, dojo or club added to our calligraphy database for easy ordering of a custom calligraphy wall scroll, just contact me.

少林禪 translates as “Little Forest Meditation.”

少林禪 is part of a movement to provide spiritual and mental health by integrating the practices of martial arts and meditation.

More information at Shaolin Chan Foundation.

The 少林 or Shaolin monks of China have been practicing the art of Kung Fu for thousands of years. While there are many schools of Kung Fu in China, Shaolin are one of the more religiously devout and disciplined.

The title of Shaolin actually refers to a specific Buddhist monastery. It should be noted that the Shaolin were famous in China long before the Kung Fu TV show. Their fame in China is due to the monks' heroic and swift rescue of an emperor during the Tang Dynasty. Most Chinese people are not keenly aware of the Kung Fu TV show and have no idea who David Carradine is or anything about his character, Kwai Chang Caine.

Note: The literal meaning of 少林 is “little forest.”

The fame of the Shaolin has spread all over Asia, as even though this is a Chinese title, the same characters are used in Japanese with the same meaning.

少林寺 is the full title of the Shaolin Temple.

This refers to the Buddhist monastery famous for its kung fu monks.

少林寺 is also known in Japanese, where they use the same characters but romanize them as Shourinji or Shōrinji.

Some believe this monastery and temple represent where Bodhidharma sat with his face to a wall for nine years, leading to his discovery of enlightenment and the establishment of Buddhism in China.

少林弟子 means Shaolin Disciple in Chinese.

This could also refer to a Shaolin Practitioner or a Shaolin Monk.

鬆林流空手道 is the Japanese title for the Matsubayashi-Ryu Karate-Do school of martial arts.

If directly translated, it means “Pine Forest Style Empty Hand Way.”

Notes:
1. 松林流 can be pronounced Matsubayashi-Ryū or Shōrin-Ryū. This can be confusing as Shōrin can also represent 少林 which refers to the Shaolin (little forest) style.
2. 松 can also be written in the traditional form of 鬆.

一心会 is the Japanese martial arts title “Isshinkai” or “Isshin-Kai.”

It literally means “One Heart Association” or “Single-Heart Club.” This title is often associated with Isshin-Ryu Aikido and Isshin-Ryu Karate-Do. This title is appropriate for the name of a dojo that teaches these styles.

Taidō (The Way of the Body) is a style of Karate practiced in Japan and popular worldwide.

Taidō or 躰道 traces a lineage from Genseiryū (玄制流), which came from Shuri-te (首里手), one of the original martial arts schools of ancient Okinawa.

The first character 躰 is a variant of the original Chinese character 體. In modern Japan, they tend to use 体, a more simple character form. 体 is also the modern Simplified Chinese form of 體.
The 躰 character is correct for this 躰道 martial arts title. But it can be confusing with so many variants out there, not to mention other homophonic Japanese words that also romanize as Taidō or Taidou.

To have a bit more fun with this 躰 character, it has a 身 radical on the left, which sets it apart. The meaning doubles up on the “body” as 身 (shin) is a character that also means body in Japanese and Chinese. On the right is 本, which often means root, stem, origin, source, or fundamental (but can also mean “book” in some contexts). This has deviated from the original 體 which was 骨 (bone) + 豊 (vessel). Hence, the body was your “bone vessel” in ancient Asia.

The meaning of 躰, as well as 體 and 体, is usually translated as the body. When related to the physical body, it can also refer to the torso, trunk, build, physique, or the constitution of a person. As an extension of this, it can also refer to someone's health (good body = good health).
However, depending on the context, it can encompass other meanings such as form, style, system, experience, aspect, corpus, corporeal, substance, or essentials.

The second character, 道, is recognized and well-known as the “Way” and is the same “do” as in Karate-do or Aikido.

天道流 is the martial arts title Tendo-ryu or Tendō-ryū in Japanese Kanji. The meaning is “Heaven Way Style” or “Sky Way Method.”

This is the title Aijō-Ryū, Aijou-Ryu or Aijou-Ryuu meaning “style of love and affection” or “flow of love” in Japanese.

八光流 (Hakkō-Ryū) is a style of jujutsu associated with Daito-Ryu.

The title Hakko-Ryu comes from the Japanese phrase which translates as “The Style of the Eighth Light,” or more literally, “Eighth Light Style.”

The 光 character is associated with brightness or brilliance. It can be used to describe someone of great talent or potential. So the meaning goes far beyond just light.

昭霊流 is Shōrei-Ryū, a type of Okinawan karate.

Shōrei-ryū means “the style of inspiration.”

剛完流 is the title of the Gokan-Ryu or “Go Kan Ryu” martial art.

英信流 is the Japanese martial arts term, Eishin-ryu.

This can also be pronounced Hidenobu-ryu. The direct meaning is something like, hero faith school (or school of heroic faith).

千唐流 (Chitō-Ryū, Chito-Ryu, or Chitoryu) is a style of karate founded by Tsuyoshi Chitose.

Here's the meaning of each character of the title:
千 = 1000
唐 = China (literally Tang, as in Tang Dynasty).
流 = Style or School.

Together, Chito-Ryu means “1,000 [year old] Chinese style.”

I will leave it up to you whether this is of Japanese or Okinawan style. The title certainly suggests roots traced back to China.

Want a giclee print Chito-Ryu logo?
Chito-Ryu on Dragon Cloud Paper
Chito-Ryu on Grass Fiber Paper

Or how about a ready-to-frame print? Chito-Ryu Fine Art Giclee Print

This is the title for Shinkakutō-ryū or Shin Kakuto Ryu in Japanese martial arts.

新格闘流 or Shinkakutō-ryū means “New Standard Fighting Style” or just “New Fighting Style.”

和道流 or Wado-Ryu is a style of Karate or Jujutsu (Jujitsu).
Note: Many will argue whether this is a style of Karate or Jujutsu.

While some find Wado-Ryu similar to Shotokan Karate, enough differences exist in perspective and technique that it stands by itself.

Breaking down the characters into the proper Japanese Romaji, you have “wa dou ryuu” or “wa dō ryū.” The meaning is roughly-translated as “Harmony Way Style” or “Peace Method Style.” The first Kanji should probably be read as harmony rather than peace in this case.

See Also:  Wado-Kai

神道夢想流 is Shintō Musō-ryū, or Shindō Musō-ryū.

This is usually used in the context of jōdō, a traditional school of the Japanese martial art of jōjutsu (the art of wielding the short staff).

完全剛柔流 is the title of the “Kanzen Goju-Ryu” or “Kanzen Gōjū-Ryū” school of Japanese martial arts.

完全 or Kanzen means complete, whole, total, or entire.

小野派一刀流 is Ono-ha Ittō-ryū, the oldest branch of Ittō-ryū styles from Ittosai Kagehisa's original martial arts style.

This is the martial arts style Iwama Ryu Japanese Kanja.

新陰流 is the title for “Shinkage-Ryu,” and the style of Japanese fencing or sword fighting.

首里流 is the title of Shuri-Ryu, a style of Karate established in the mid-1900s by Robert Trias in Arizona.

天真武甲流兵法 is the Kanji title that romanizes as Tenshin Bukō-Ryū Heihō or Tenshin Buko-Ryu Heiho.

天真武甲流兵法 is a Japanese koryū martial art that has its roots in the Toda-ryū, founded in the late Muromachi period around the year 1560 by Toda Seigen.

This title can be pronounced in Chinese with a similar meaning, however, it should be considered a Japanese title.

松濤館流 is the Japanese martial arts title, Shotokan-Ryu.

This is a style or school of karate.

闘魂流 is the name of the Japaense style of Karate known as Toukon-Ryu.

The meaning is “Fighting Spirit Style.”

糸東流 is the title for Shito-Ryu.

Note that while this title can be pronounced in Chinese, it only makes complete sense in Japanese.

This is the martial arts style Tenshin-Ryū Heihō.

香取神道流 is the Japanese Kanji for the Katori Shintō-ryū martial arts.

This is the martial arts style Meifu Shinkage-Ryu in Japanese Kanji.

和道流空手 is the Japanese martial arts title, “Wado-Ryu Karate.”

See Also:  Wado-Kai

剛柔流空手道 is the title of the Goju-Ryu Karate-Do school of martial arts.

無外流 is the name Mugai-Ryu in Japanese Kanji.

無外流 means “Without Outward Flow” or “Outer Nothingness School” and is a Japanese koryū martial art school.

剛柔松濤流 is the martial arts title Goju Shoto-Ryu in Japanese Kanji.

夢想神伝流 is the martial arts style Musō Shinden-Ryū in Japanese Kanji.

神伝不動流 is the title of the martial arts school/style known as Shinden Fudo Ryū.

戸山流 or Toyama-Ryu is a relatively modern Japanese swordsmanship style (gendai budo) developed in the early 20th century at the Toyama Military Academy in Japan.

It was designed to efficiently train Imperial Japanese Army officers in swordsmanship, with a focus on practical application for battlefield use.

糸東流空手道 is the title for Shito-Ryu Karate-Do.

&#; is the martial arts title, Niten Ichi-Ryū.

The rough translation is “Two Heavens as One.”

浅山一伝流 or Asayama Ichiden-ryū is a Japanese koryū martial art founded in the late Muromachi period by Asayama Ichidensai Shigetatsu.

上地流空手道 is the title of the Uechi-Ryu Karate-Do school of Okinawan martial arts.

Uechi means “higher stages of practice” in a Buddhist context.

調和流柔術 is the title for Chowa-Ryu Jujitsu.

This roughly translates as harmonious-flow Jujitsu. The first two characters are sometimes romanized as chōwa, chouwa, chowa, or cho-wa.

沖縄剛柔流空手道 is the title of the Okinawa Goju-Ryu Karate-Do school of martial arts.

一心流 is the title for Isshin-Ryu Karate.

The literal meaning is “one heart method.” You could also translate it as “unified hearts methods.” It implies people doing things as if with one heart and mind.
The second Kanji can be defined as the heart, mind, or essence of your being. Clearly, there's a multitude of ways you can define this title in English.

See Also:  Isshin-Kai

一心流空手道 is the full title for Isshin-Ryu Karate-Do.

The literal meaning is “one heart method empty hand way.”

There are other ways to translate this, but if you are looking for this title, you already know that.

This would make a great wall scroll for your dojo or private studio if you study this form of Japanese (technically from Okinawa) Karate.

Because this is a specifically-Japanese title, I strongly recommend that you select our Japanese Master Calligrapher to create this artwork.

天真正伝香取神道流 is Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū, a very old form of Japanese martial arts.

糸東流氣目館空手道 is the title for Shito-Ryu Ki-Me-Kan Karate-Do.
A school of Karate.

Note that while this title can be pronounced in Chinese, it only makes complete sense in Japanese.

初心流 is often translated in Japanese as “beginner's mind style” or “beginner's spirit method.”

The first character means first, initial, primary, junior, beginning, or basic.

The second character means heart, mind, soul, or essence.

The third character means style, method, or some will translate it as a school.

Please note, there is more than one martial arts school that romanizes as Shoshin-Ryu.

正心流 is a Japanese title that means “right heart style” or “true mind method.”

The first character means right, correct, greater, or true.

The second character means heart, mind, soul, or essence.

The third character means style, method, or some will translate it as a school.

Please note, there is more than one martial arts school that romanizes as Shoshin-Ryu.

武士流柔術 is a special title added for a customer's specific school/style of Jujutsu.

Please only order this if you are a member/practitioner of this style.

Wado-Kai is used as a title for styles of Karate and Aikido.

Breaking down the characters into the proper Japanese Romaji, you have “wa dou kai” or “wa dō kai.” The meaning is roughly-translated as “Harmony Way Club” or “Peace Method Association.” The first Kanji should probably be read as harmony, rather than peace in this case.

See Also:  Wado-Ryu

和道會合気道 is the title for Wado-Kai Aikido.

See Also:  Wado-Ryu

志道館 is the Japanese title Shidōkan (sometimes pronounced Kokorozashi-do-kan).

志道館 is often associated with Shorin-ryu Shidokan (小林流志道館). Do not confuse this title with the newer 士道館 which is also romanized as Shidōkan.

Meibukan (明武舘) is a branch of Gōjū-ryū karate. It was created by Meitoku Yagi, a student of Goju-ryu's founder, Chojun Miyagi. Meibukan means "House of the pure-minded warrior."

鹿 is the single character for deer in Chinese, Japanese Kanji, and old Korean Hanja.

In Japanese, this can refer especially to the sika deer of Japan (Cervus Nippon).

三戦 is a title that literally means “three battles/conflicts/wars.”

三戦 is often figuratively used to relay the idea of a battle to unify the mind, body, and spirit.

Original usage likely comes from Fujian province in Southern China (just across from Taiwan).

This title is used in various schools such as Okinawan Karate, Uechi-Ryū, Gōjū-Ryū, Fujian White Crane, and Five Ancestors among others.

松林 is a Japanese, Chinese, and Korean word that means pine forest.

Also, a Japanese surname that romanizes as Matsubayashi or Shorin/Shourin.

Seiunchin or 制引戦 is a kata of Goju-ryu karate.

小林 means little forest in Japanese and Chinese.

This can also be the Japanese surname or martial arts style called Kobayashi or Shōbayashi.

In Japanese martial arts, this can also be pronounced as Shorin and is included as such in some MA school names.

修交会 is Shūkōkai, Shūkō-kai, or Shuko-kai, a martial arts style derived from Shitō-ryū (糸東流) back in the 1940s.

合気術 (Aiki-Jutsu) is a school of martial arts descended from Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu.

Note: Some also romanize 合気術 as Aiki-Jitsu.

砕破 is the title “Saifa” written in Japanese Kanji. This literally means “smash and tear.” Like most styles of martial arts, Saifa has origins in China. It was Higashionna that brought Saifa to Okinawa.

Saifa is generally associated with Gōjū-ryū as a title for a kata.

Notes: While Saifa is often written as 砕破, it can also be written 碎破 (just a variation on the first Kanji). Sometimes written in Japanese Katakana as サイハ.

古流武術 is the title “Ko-ryū Bujutsu” which basically means “old school martial arts” or “ancient flow martial arts.”

This is more a Japanese than a Chinese martial arts term but would be understood in Chinese as well.

致道館 is the name Chidokan.

Chidōkan was established in 1805. The original Chidōkan school was located in Tsuruoka, Japan.

The original school taught a combination of traditional Chinese literature, Ogasawara-ryū etiquette, Chinese medicine and martial arts alongside Confucianism.

六 is the number 6 in Chinese, Korean Hanja, and Japanese Kanji. I have no idea why you would want this as a calligraphy wall scroll, but hundreds of visitors search for this number.

In Japanese, this character can be pronounced differently depending on context. It can be ryu, roku, mu, and a few others when combined with other Kanji.

There's just one way to pronounce this in Chinese. Korean also has just one pronunciation.

Also written 陸 or 陆 as an anti-fraud banker’s numeral.