Library

Articles

Seishintouitsu: Concentration of Mind — Master Calligrapher Eri Takase explores seishintouitsu as a common theme in Japanese Calligraphy, Martial Arts, and the Tea Ceremony

The Diplomas of Ryoma Elementary School — Sixth graders in Yoshino, Japan create handmade graduation diplomas from scratch, guided by National Living Treasure papermaker Hiroyuki Fukunishi

Hiroyuki Fukunishi, Japanese Papermaker — A visit with National Living Treasure papermaker Hiroyuki Fukunishi in the papermaking village of Yoshino, Japan

Traditional Japanese Calligraphy — An introduction to Japanese national calligraphy competitions, featuring three award-winning works by Master Calligrapher Eri Takase

Interviews

Anime Reign Interview — Master Calligrapher Eri Takase discusses her journey from childhood training through national competitions to contemporary art, and creating a secret ninjutsu makimono

California Reiki Interview of Master Takase — Master Calligrapher Eri Takase discusses the art and energy of Japanese calligraphy — hara, ki, mushin, and the physical and spiritual experience of creating large competition pieces

Photoshop Magazine Interview — Master Calligrapher Eri Takase discusses her art, process, and the role of technology in Japanese calligraphy for the Turkish edition of Photoshop Magazine

Reference

How Kanji Are Chosen for Your Name — The dictionary foundation, matching system, and artistic judgment behind every kanji name design — how we find the right characters and why you can trust the result.

How to Write Names in Hiragana — Writing foreign names in hiragana — the flowing Japanese script that gives names a softer, more Japanese aesthetic, with details on how hiragana differs from katakana for name designs.

How to Write Names in Kanji — Writing names in Japanese kanji — two methods, phonetic (ateji) and literal translation, with guidance on when each works best and detailed examples by Master Calligrapher Eri Takase.

How to Write Names in Katakana — How Japanese writes a foreign name in katakana, by how it is said. The rules you can check on your own name, the extended katakana for foreign sounds, and real names with their readings.

How to Write Your Name in Japanese, by How You Say It — Your name is written in Japanese by how you say it, not how it is spelled. How katakana works, with real names and their readings, and when hiragana or kanji is the better choice.

How We Pronounce Your Name — How we determine the correct pronunciation for names from dozens of languages — the dictionaries, the challenges, and why getting it right matters for Japanese calligraphy.

Names in Japanese — Translation Methodology — How we translate names into Japanese from how they are pronounced, with the pronunciation sources, the quality gate, and how a reading can be checked against the way Japan already writes a famous namesake.

What Your Name Means — How we research name meanings — 19 scholarly sources, thousands of etymologies verified across multiple authorities, and what it means for your Japanese calligraphy design.

Where Your Name Translations Come From — The six data sources, four pronunciation dictionaries, and the engine check behind the name translations on this site: over 290,000 and growing.

Resources

Fair Use — What you may do with what you find on this site, and how we credit the work of others.

Glossary of Japanese Calligraphy Terms — Definitions of essential terms in Japanese calligraphy including script styles, materials, and ranking

Learn Japanese Calligraphy — Learn Japanese calligraphy with Master Calligrapher Eri Takase. A structured course covering tools, technique, and the basic strokes of the kaisho script.

Library Sources & Hosting — Provenance, copyright posture, and editorial notes for the works hosted in takase.com's library.

Master Takase's Custom Design Process — How Master Calligrapher Eri Takase collaborates with clients to create custom Japanese calligraphy, from first concept to final art

Name Resources — The reference works, databases, pronunciation tools, and academic research behind every name on this site.

The Japanese Alphabet — Common questions about the Japanese writing system, including hiragana, katakana, and kanji

Philology

The story behind each text we brush, followed to its oldest record and to the book that named it in English.

Proverbs and Maxims 43 articles

Sayings Japanese people still use, from saru mo ki kara ochiru, even monkeys fall from trees, to the four-character wishes hung for a household or a great vow. Each study follows the saying to its oldest printed record and to the book that first put it into English.

Haiku and Poems 44 articles

Verses by Bashō, Buson, Issa, Shiki and the poets around them. Each study reads the poem in its earliest print, says what its words meant then, and sets our English beside the translations a reader may already know.

Zen Phrases 12 articles

Short lines from the Zen records, such as kissako, do have some tea, and nichinichi kore kōjitsu, day after day, a good day. Each study finds the line in the record it comes from and the teacher it is told of.

Scripture 10 articles

Lines from the Buddhist sutras and from the Bible, in the Japanese they are brushed in. Each study names the sutra or the verse, and the translation the Japanese words come from.

Classics 31 articles

Phrases from the Chinese classics and from Japan's own masters, such as onko chishin from the Analects and Musashi's ware koto ni oite kōkai sezu. Each study opens the book the words come from and shows the passage they stand in.

Words and Phrases 155 articles

Single words and short compounds we brush, from bushidō to ikebana. Each study follows the word to its earliest record and says what it means in Japanese today.