The Japanese term for the Parrot family is inko. Nowadays it’s written in katakana but it also has a few Kanji (although they are unused) 音呼、鸚哥…
Most bird names are written in katakana or hiragana alphabets now which is kind of a shame because they have these exquisite kanji. Take the following examples…
cockatoo, oumu 鸚鵡
cassowary, hikuidori 火食鳥 (this kanji literally means fire-eating bird!)
eagle, washi 鷲
flamingo, beniduru 紅鶴
Japanese nightingale, uguisu 鶯
kingfisher, kawasemi 翡翠
wren, misosazai 鷦鷯
Maybe it’s just me?
I’ve been back into sketching in preparation for some new projects.
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Crimson Rosella. Whose Kanji by the way is impossible to find but its Japanese name is akakusainko |
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Upside down! Rainbow lorikeet, a.k.a 五色青灰鸚哥 goshiki-seigai-inko!! |
The next step is to turn my sketches into something textiles and magnificent! (the hard part!!) Will keep you updated as my design ideas progress…