Chinese craze for English tattoos - Tattoos of Chinese characters have long been a fad in the West as a way of denoting the mystique of their bearers.
But in a reversal of the trend, Chinese ink parlours are reporting a sudden craze among their clients for tattoos in English.
Zhang Aiping, a tattooist at Tattoo 108 in Shanghai, said: "Around 30 per cent to 40 per cent of our customers are choosing tattoos in English letters now. This has happened really suddenly, since the beginning of this year.
Chinese ink parlours are reporting a sudden craze among their clients for tattoos in English
"I just did one a few days ago for a footballer at Shanghai Shenhua club. It said: 'I miss u forever'."
Tattoos have existed in China for thousands of years, but have been largely taboo under Communist Party rule.
Only in the last five years have scores of tattoo parlours sprung up, operating in a grey zone of legality.
Chinese clients have been inspired by footballers such as David Beckham and American basketball stars.
Mr Beckham sports a tattoo in Chinese characters, inked on a trip to Hong Kong, which reads: "Death and life have determined appointments. Riches and honour depend on heaven".
Others have been less felicitous with their choice of Chinese words, with combinations that leave native speakers scratching their heads.
One Chinese tattooist said he had seen a Westerner with the character meaning "gas" on his arm, instead of "spirit".
Marcus Camby, a basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers, has two enormous characters on his upper arm with no obvious meaning in Chinese.
In China, meanwhile, the motivation for choosing English letters is simple – any foreign language is mysterious and exotic.
At Tattoo 007, Zhu Jian has inked a variety of English phrases, some more grammatically correct than others, including "Mr Lonely", "Best love in my life" and "I belong to the god and it bless me".
He founded his parlour in 2002, in a residential building in a central Shanghai suburb.
"We get 20 to 30 customers a month, and import our paint and needles from Europe," said Mr Zhu, who charges an average of 1000 yuan (£100) per tattoo, the equivalent of a factory worker's monthly salary.
"We get mostly college students, but we have also had doctors, professors and bankers. Tattoos of letters have become very popular since last year, with around three out of ten people going for them. They are simple and graceful," he said. "Quite a few just copy the tattoo of their favourite stars, like Beckham or Angelina Jolie."
Yang Enna, a 22-year-old television producer in Shanghai, said: "English tattoos are just more special. They are very trendy and they say something about my personality.
"They are much simpler compared to Chinese characters and can hold deep meanings. English letters can be used as acronyms so your privacy is protected and people are curious about what you have written on your arms.
"If I had tattoos in Chinese, everyone would immediately know what they meant," she said. ( telegraph.co.uk )
But in a reversal of the trend, Chinese ink parlours are reporting a sudden craze among their clients for tattoos in English.
Zhang Aiping, a tattooist at Tattoo 108 in Shanghai, said: "Around 30 per cent to 40 per cent of our customers are choosing tattoos in English letters now. This has happened really suddenly, since the beginning of this year.
Chinese ink parlours are reporting a sudden craze among their clients for tattoos in English
"I just did one a few days ago for a footballer at Shanghai Shenhua club. It said: 'I miss u forever'."
Tattoos have existed in China for thousands of years, but have been largely taboo under Communist Party rule.
Only in the last five years have scores of tattoo parlours sprung up, operating in a grey zone of legality.
Chinese clients have been inspired by footballers such as David Beckham and American basketball stars.
Mr Beckham sports a tattoo in Chinese characters, inked on a trip to Hong Kong, which reads: "Death and life have determined appointments. Riches and honour depend on heaven".
Others have been less felicitous with their choice of Chinese words, with combinations that leave native speakers scratching their heads.
One Chinese tattooist said he had seen a Westerner with the character meaning "gas" on his arm, instead of "spirit".
Marcus Camby, a basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers, has two enormous characters on his upper arm with no obvious meaning in Chinese.
In China, meanwhile, the motivation for choosing English letters is simple – any foreign language is mysterious and exotic.
At Tattoo 007, Zhu Jian has inked a variety of English phrases, some more grammatically correct than others, including "Mr Lonely", "Best love in my life" and "I belong to the god and it bless me".
He founded his parlour in 2002, in a residential building in a central Shanghai suburb.
"We get 20 to 30 customers a month, and import our paint and needles from Europe," said Mr Zhu, who charges an average of 1000 yuan (£100) per tattoo, the equivalent of a factory worker's monthly salary.
"We get mostly college students, but we have also had doctors, professors and bankers. Tattoos of letters have become very popular since last year, with around three out of ten people going for them. They are simple and graceful," he said. "Quite a few just copy the tattoo of their favourite stars, like Beckham or Angelina Jolie."
Yang Enna, a 22-year-old television producer in Shanghai, said: "English tattoos are just more special. They are very trendy and they say something about my personality.
"They are much simpler compared to Chinese characters and can hold deep meanings. English letters can be used as acronyms so your privacy is protected and people are curious about what you have written on your arms.
"If I had tattoos in Chinese, everyone would immediately know what they meant," she said. ( telegraph.co.uk )
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