Wednesday, March 4, 2009

I have received many emails about some idiot posting this photo in BME's tattoo gallery (Feb. 24, 2009):


http://www.bmeink.com/A90224/high/fxr2-samurai.jpg

The caption says:

Samurai
While spending some time in Japan, I was lucky enough to get the kanji for "Dragon soul" tattooed on my arm at a studio in Tokyo. The artist helped me translate the phrase into kanji.
(Tokyo, JP)

Hmm.... but does he really think it means "Samurai" or "Dragon soul"? The story is a bit inconsistent. Or does he really know his tattoo 外人 really means "foreigner" and is he just yanking our chains?

Anyway, it's funny either way.
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19 comments:

  1. LinguaFranca86March 4, 2009 at 7:19 PM

    oh yeah that's pretty funny. but i guess if you can't trust a japanese tatoo artist in japan, who can you trust??? :)

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  2. tianMarch 4, 2009 at 7:37 PM

    @LinguaFranca86,

    That is assuming whoever posted the photo & caption is telling the truth.

    Or, he is pulling a prank.

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  3. Alan SiegristMarch 4, 2009 at 8:11 PM

    Yes, I'm pretty sure it is a silly prank. But it is just so astonishingly stupid and random for someone to actually go out and get a tattoo (or perhaps a simulated tattoo) saying "foreigner" on their arm, just for the purpose of falsely claiming that they were wrongly tattooed by a tattooist in Japan.

    I am pretty sure that would not happen. Most tattoo artists in Japan are very serious about their work and they would never intentionally

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  4. Yokohama'bamaMarch 4, 2009 at 8:20 PM

    Like you said, funny either way!

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  5. shirokiryuuMarch 4, 2009 at 11:03 PM

    Hahaha. Great one. Although seeing a authentic Kanji tattoo feel kinda refreshing after seeing so many bad imitations.

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  6. AbigailMarch 5, 2009 at 4:53 AM

    I would just like to say that I think this blog is awesome. I love when people get kanji wrong on them. I don't think they realize that not only do the characters have a literal meaning, but they have connotations as well... Something you should study deeply before you get the character permanently tattooed....

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  7. AnonymousMarch 5, 2009 at 5:05 AM

    At least its good calligraphy.

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  8. KizMarch 5, 2009 at 7:53 AM

    I saw this yesterday--figured you'd already gotten enough emails about it by now. Also, it struck me as a little too ridiculous; I think it's more likely the person with the tattoo knows full well what it means (though I doubt he understands the connotations and implications of it) and concocted the story just for a few laughs. K

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  9. YorckMarch 6, 2009 at 7:09 AM

    Samurai 武士
    Dragon soul 龙灵 or 龙魂？

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  10. Alan SiegristMarch 6, 2009 at 10:41 AM

    @Yorck:

    Technically "samurai" is written with one of the characters 侍 or 士 in Japanese.

    武士 is 'bushi' as in 'bushido' [武士道], and it means warrior, but in the context of Japan, it would mean what we would call a samurai in English, although the characters 武士 are not pronounced 'samurai' in Japanese.

    -Alan

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  11. SaheenMarch 8, 2009 at 11:02 AM

    Um, is it just me, or does that look like a shoop? The area around the tattoo is very blurred and hairless, and not in a 'I just shaved' sort of way...

    Either way, if it's genuine, surely he can't have known. Who would have 'foreigner' tattooed just to amuse people on the internet?

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  12. LinguaFranca86March 8, 2009 at 9:16 PM

    @tian: ah yes it could be prank. Magic markers and too much beer maybe?

    btw, LOVE the site. keep it up.
    know you've read this alot, but it's true. :)

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  13. bhairMarch 11, 2009 at 3:07 PM

    I think "外人" or "外國人" should become the only Chinese/Kanji tattoo given to white ppl.

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  14. DankmanMarch 13, 2009 at 12:45 PM

    外人(gaijin) could mean "foreigner" if it is short for 外国人(gaikokujin). But it could just as easily mean "outsider" and is sometimes used as an insult, which I think is the case.

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  15. AnonymousMarch 21, 2009 at 3:32 PM

    rolf.
    When i first saw the picture i was like, "wtf? some tattoed gai-jin -- outside person -- on his ribcage?"

    He deserved it, for wanting to tattoo something stupid as "dragon soul" on himself.

    As a comfort i can say that the SOTO/HOKA or in this case, GAI character is based on the ancient chinese diviners/fortune-teller. And the other part of it is based on a rising moon to form evening. These put together and you get outside, since the diviners usually where outside during the evening.

    Awsome!!!

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  16. ellessApril 8, 2009 at 7:22 AM

    I'm pretty divided on this one. Tattoos in Japan are uncommon, because they're strongly associated with the yakuza. As far as I know, yakuza tattoos are usually home jobs, not done in public parlors.

    But if he was dumb enough to wander into a yakuza-run tattoo parlor, well, I'm ot surprised that this is the result.

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  17. Zen AngelApril 13, 2009 at 1:10 AM

    Maybe he was once a fan of the band Foreigner...and is now, rightfully, ashamed. So he made up the Dragon Soul story so women would never know he was once that lame.

    Just a thought...

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  18. Alan SiegristApril 17, 2009 at 8:21 AM

    Zen Angel,

    Maybe he was once a fan of the band Foreigner...That's funny! But seriously, the name of the band Foreigner is written フォリナー [forinaa] in Japanese. I wonder how you would write it in Chinese...?

    Alan

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  19. AnonymousFebruary 8, 2010 at 9:37 PM

    Foolish gaijin!

    Why would one ever even think about getting a tattoo in any language without knowing EXACTLY what it means literally and socially?

    But anywho, that is the most hilarious practical joke I have ever seen. Especially considering that 外人 is a common insult to describe anyone who isn't completely Japanese. Good stuff!

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