Your Chinese name seal: meaning, styles and how to get one

For more than two thousand years, emperors, poets and painters in China signed their work with a red seal (印章), sometimes called a chop. In Taiwan people still use personal seals on bank forms, contracts and wedding papers. A seal carved with your own Chinese name is one of the most personal gifts from Chinese culture.

Red characters or white?

• Red characters (朱文): the characters are raised, so they print in red on a white background. Light and elegant.
• White characters (白文): the characters are carved in, so they print white inside a red square. Bold and classic.

Artists often own one of each, and use them together.

First, a good Chinese name

A Chinese name is chosen for both sound and meaning. Usually the family name echoes the sound of your surname, and the given name combines a character that sounds like your first name with one that carries a quality you value, such as wisdom, peace or joy. Get your Chinese name free, then see it as a seal.

How a seal reads

A four-character seal is read from the top right, down, then the top left, down. When a name has three characters, carvers often add 印 (seal) or 之印 to fill the square.

How to use it

• Press it lightly into cinnabar ink paste, then press firmly and evenly on paper.
• Sign your paintings, sketches, letters and books.
• Use it on handmade cards and gift tags.
• Store it in its box, away from sunlight.