Jacket embroidery: kanji AND latin/roman characters at the same time?

Hello everyone,

Has anyone ever seen, or knows of, a sleeve embroidered with both kanji and latin/roman characters, say with one above the other?

As much as I enjoy having a gi embroidered with my name in kanji, here in North America I am wondering how practical it is to have only kanji that very few can read. Of course no embroidery at all is an option.

At the same time I have grown attached to the kanji, as it is tradition in my dojo to receive as a gift from sensei one's name in not just kanji, but characters chosen to reflect one's personality; a very personal gift.

Opinions and comments welcomed.

Thanks.

Nick Pittson wrote: Hello everyone, Has anyone ever seen, or knows of, a sleeve embroidered with both kanji and latin/roman characters, say with one above the other?

Nick, several people in our dojo have both. roman characters horizontal and kanji verticle on the sleeve. I ended up just getting name in katakana (horizontal). I ordered from Tozando and could not see how to request both.
Cheers,
Jeff

Hi Nick,
I have also seen both, but one quick point about Japanese writing. It probably isn't Kanji that you have seen. Most non Japanese people have their gi embroidered with katakana which is used for words of non Japanese origin. Sometimes non Japanese people select Kanji that can be read to sound like their names but that is rare. In Japan and North America, I have mostly seen Katakana or Romaji(Roman letters), or both.

Thanks for both responses. Jeff, I had in fact followed your recent Facebook photo to your dojo's pictures.

Chris, thank you for elaborating on the katakana vs. kanji.
In my case, the kanji as seen in my avatar, was chosen by my sensei, a native of Japan. If memory serves he told me they (can) mean "source" and "benevolence", respectively.

Though you are of course correct, there are many non-japanese who have their names more directly and phonetically translated into kanji.

I have often heard the story of another student and another sensei (same deal, he was given his name in kanji, the sensei also being Japanese and the student a westerner, they were both present). While waiting at one of the Budo kan embukai staging areas before going out to demonstrate, the student tells of how a Japanese gentleman he did not know was inquisitively pondering the kanji on his sleeve for several moments, and the sudden grin and exclamation of "Oh! Now I get it! Dancing River of Ki! That means Mikeru!".