Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Chinese Ducks


Thank you to my secret pal for these very cute rubber ducks. They go with the bath towel set very well. These arrived a month ago and I was trying to translate them before posting. But I need help translating the symbols. I believe they are the traditional style characters not simplified. I also think the back left one is happiness. If anyone wants to practice their Chinese symbol skills, please share! Thank you again secret pal - you are very creative!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Those are awesome!

CaucAsiaN316 said...

Hello Brillhart family, it's Lisa! :) hope you're doing well! The ducks are so cool! Here's what the characters mean:

using the top picture:

top left - "fu" means fortune, luck

top right - "le" means happiness. The same character, pronounced "yue" means music. The etymology of this word is fascinating - the character is supposed to look like drums resting on a wooden stand. The Chinese believe that music cultivates the soul and leads to happiness and virtue.

bottom left - "kang" means health.

bottom right - I do not think this is a Chinese character but it looks like the symbol for longevity. However, because it is not completely symmetrical like the symbol for longevity, I might guess that it symbolizes an insect like a cicada or cricket, which the Chinese consider lucky because they are singing insects.

Best of luck!