King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “celebrate”

Romaji: iwau
to celebrate; to congratulate; to observe (a festival)

In Japanese, celebrate is , read (iwau).

Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.

Meanings

  1. v5u, vt to celebrate; to congratulate; to observe (a festival)
  2. v5u, vt to present (a gift) in celebration; to drink in celebration
  3. v5u, vt to wish for (a happy future, good fortune, etc.); to pray for

Written forms: . Readings: .

Kanji and stroke order

celebrate, congratulate
on: シュク、シュウ
kun: いわ.う
9 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “celebrate”

WordReadingMeaning
うたう utauto extol; to sing the praises of; to celebrate
たたえる tataeruto praise; to extol; to hail
ことほぐ kotohoguto congratulate; to wish (someone) well; to celebrate
しょうする shousuruto celebrate (someone's achievements); to eulogize (someone's virtues, services, etc.)
しゅくする shukusuruto congratulate; to celebrate

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
しゅくじつ shukujitsunational holiday; public holiday
いわい iwaicongratulation; congratulations; celebration
しゅくふく shukufukucelebration (of a joyous occasion); blessing; giving one's blessing
しゅくが shukugacelebration; congratulations
おいわい oiwaicongratulation; congratulations; celebration

See also: Chinese symbol for “celebrate”.

Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.

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