Also can you explain what each kanji character means?
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on http://nlb.ninjal.ac.jp 元気 and 元氣 are the same thing I just wondered of the difference.– SamFeb 14, 2016 at 20:47
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2 Answers
The kanji 氣 is an old alternative form of 気. You may see this kanji in calligraphy arts, historical documents and such, but in modern usage this word is always 元気.
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Thank you very much, I had no idea I was looking at such an old character.– SamFeb 14, 2016 at 20:59
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Modern Chinese differentiates between Traditional (Taiwan, Hong Kong, etc) and Simplified characters (mainland). One might assume that Japanese Kanji and Traditional Chinese are the same thing; not so. The Japanese have made a number of their own simplifications. Here are a few examples of Kanji that are considered "archaic" by Japanese standards, but are the everyday form used in Traditional:
[氣]{hei3}→[気]{き}
[學]{hok6}→[学]{がく}
[貓]{maau1}→[猫]{びょう} (previously みょう, previously めう)
[國]{gwok3}→[国]{こく}
For instance, the word for weather in Cantonese is [天氣]{tin1 hei3}. Look familiar? :)
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3Citation needed: "Many Japanese speakers think that Japanese Kanji and Traditional Chinese are the same thing; " I think you'd be hard pressed to find a native speaker or advanced learner suffering under the belief that contemporary Japanese characters are the same as traditional Chinese characters.– virmaiorFeb 14, 2016 at 22:20
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2Many non-Japanese/Chinese speakers think that Japanese Kanji and Traditional Chinese are the same thing の間違いじゃないのｗ– Chocolate ♦Feb 15, 2016 at 7:42
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