Year of the dragon 2012
2012 is the year
of the dragon. There are twelve animals in the
Japanese zodiac (Juunishi):
the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey,
rooster, dog and boar.
The dragon is the only mythological creature in the zodiac.
The Japanese word for "dragon"
is, "tatsu" or "ryuu". There are three kanji characters to express the
word, "dragon".
One (竜) is in Joyo kanji, and the other one (龍) is the old style kanji.
When describing a dragon as, "Juunishi", a different character (辰) than
the previous two is used.
Dragons are a
familiar motif in Japanese art, architecture and popular culture.
The "Chuunichi Dragons" are a professional baseball team. "Dragon Ball"
is a manga series. "Dragon Quest" is a popular videogame series.
"Tatsu no ko Taro (Taro, the Dragon Boy)" is a famous Japanese folk
tale, which was made into a movie in 1979.
A "seahorse" is called, "tatsu no otoshigo (the dragon's lost child)," since it resembles a dragon.
Here are some Japanese expressions that are related to the word "dragon":
Thanks to
my friend Kaoru san,
I am so happy to have this cute Monchhichi family now.
Copyright
of Monchhichi photos by
Heike
Andrea Grote.
You are not allowed to copy or publish them.
Thank you.