Creation 創造
sōzō2 characters22 strokes
創造 (sōzō) means creation: making something new that did not exist before, using your own ideas and imagination.
Free practice sheet
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Meaning 意味
What 創造 means
The Japanese word for creation, written with 2 kanji and read sōzō.
創造 means bringing something new into being from your own ideas. The related word 創造力, with 力 (power) added, means creativity.
When people write it in Japan. In Japan, 創造 is a popular theme for calligraphy exhibitions and a good word for goals for the year ahead.
Japanese children know every kanji here by 6th grade.
How to write it 書き方
Brush tips for 創造
Three things to watch
- In 創, write 倉 on the left large, and the knife radical 刂 on the right (rittō) slim and long.
- Bring the last stroke of 刂 straight down and flick up to the left.
- Write the walking radical of 造 (shinnyō) last. Stretch it out slowly to the right, as if 告 sits on top of it.
Stroke order
Follow the vermilion stroke, frame by frame.
Stroke order data: KanjiVG by Ulrich Apel, CC BY-SA 3.0.
How to practice 練習
Trace first, then copy
- PrintPrint both pages at actual size, on US Letter or A4. Page 1 is the model. Page 2 is the tracing sheet.
- TraceTrace the outlines with a brush pen. Or lay thin hanshi paper over the page and trace with brush and ink.
- CopySet the model beside your paper and copy it stroke by stroke. Look at the model more than at your own paper.
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The book is out now.
Japanese Calligraphy for Beginners takes you from holding the brush to writing whole words, step by step, in English. Every model inside was brushed by our teachers.
Starter Set, $72.99 with the book, brush, ink and paper: coming soon.