''Huaya'' ("flower seal"; ; ; , Vietnamese: ,

chữ Hán ( , ) are the Chinese characters that were used to write Literary Chinese in Vietnam, Literary Chinese (; ) and Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary in Vietnamese language, Vietnamese. They were officially used in Vietnam after the Red River Delta region ...

: ) are stylized

signature A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, Handwriting, handwritt ...

s or marks used in East Asian cultures Originating from China, the ''huaya'' was historically used by prominent figures such as government officials, monks, artists, and craftsmen. The use of stamp seals gradually replaced the ''huaya'', though they are still used occasionally in modern times by important people.

Design

Sino Japanese Friendship and Trade Treaty 13 September 1871

Most ''huaya'' are constructed from parts of

Chinese characters Chinese characters are logographs used Written Chinese, to write the Chinese languages and others from regions historically influenced by Chinese culture. Of the four independently invented writing systems accepted by scholars, they represe ...

and resemble them to a certain degree. A small number of early marks, mostly used by Buddhist monks, are simply abstract pictures related to the person's identity. Generally, one or more of the characters from the person's name is used in creating a ''huaya''. Designs are often taken from highly calligraphic, distorted, or alternative forms of a character, as well as merging parts of two characters into a single mark (similar to a

monogram A monogram is a motif (visual arts), motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbo ...

). Descendants of the same family or artistic lineage will often have similar-looking marks. Several styles of ''huaya'' have existed throughout history. Early marks from the Tang (618-907) and Song dynasties (960–1279) were more abstract and minimalistic compared to later designs. During the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

(1368-1644), marks with a design between two horizontal lines became popular in China, and was adopted later by the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

in Japan.

History

China

The oldest surviving record of ''huaya'' is in the '' Book of Northern Qi'', the official history of the

Northern Qi Qi, known as the Northern Qi (), Later Qi (後齊) or Gao Qi (高齊) in historiography, was a Dynasties in Chinese history, Chinese imperial dynasty and one of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties during the ...

dynasty (550–577 AD). ''Huaya'' reached its peak popularity during the

Northern Song The Song dynasty ( ) was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Ten Kingdoms, endin ...

dynasty (960-1127). After that, its popularity began to decline. Tang Xuanzong signature (huaya).jpg, Mark of

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (; 8 September 685 – 3 May 762), personal name Li Longji, was an Emperor of China, emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, reigning from 712 to 756. His reign of 44 years was the longest during the Tang dynasty. Throu ...

(685-762) 宋太祖御押 01.svg, Mark of

Emperor Taizu of Song Emperor Taizu of Song (21 March 927 – 14 November 976), personal name Zhao Kuangyin, courtesy name Yuanlang, was the founding emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 960 until his death in 976. Formerly a distinguished milita ...

(927-976) 宋太宗御押.svg, Mark of

Emperor Taizong of Song Zhao Jiong (20 November 939 – 8 May 997), known as Zhao Guangyi from 960 to 977 and Zhao Kuangyi before 960, also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizong of Song, was the second emperor of the Song dynasty of China. He reigned from 9 ...

(939–997) Song Huizong signature (tian xia yi ren).jpg, Mark of

Emperor Huizong of Song Emperor Huizong of Song (7 June 1082 – 4 June 1135), personal name Zhao Ji, was the eighth emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the penultimate emperor of the Northern Song dynasty. He was also a very well-known painter, poet and calli ...

(1082-1135) Hongwu Emperor signature (Kao).jpg, Mark of the

Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328– 24 June 1398), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming, personal name Zhu Yuanzhang, courtesy name Guorui, was the List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, founding emperor of the Ming dyna ...

(1328-1398) Chongzhen Emperor signature (huaya).jpg, Mark of the

Chongzhen Emperor The Chongzhen Emperor (6 February 1611 – 25 April 1644), personal name Zhu Youjian, courtesy name Deyue,Wang Yuan (王源)，''Ju ye tang wen ji'' (《居業堂文集》), vol. 19. "聞之張景蔚親見烈皇帝神主題御諱字德約，行� ...

(1611-1644) Bada Shanren signature (huaya).jpg, Mark of the painter Bada Shanren (1626–1705) Li Hongzhang Signature (Kao).png, Mark of general

Li Hongzhang Li Hongzhang, Marquess Suyi ( zh, t=李鴻章; also Li Hung-chang; February 15, 1823 – November 7, 1901) was a Chinese statesman, general and diplomat of the late Qing dynasty. He quelled several major rebellions and served in importan ...

(1823-1901)

Japan

''Huaya'' first spread to Japan during the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

(794-1185), where it is called ''Kaō''. Though their use became far less widespread after the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, they continue to be used even by some contemporary politicians and other famous people. The reading and identification of individual ''kaō'' often requires specialist knowledge; whole books devoted to the topic have been published. Kaō of Taira no Tadamori.svg, Mark of Taira no Tadamori (1096–1153) Kaō of Ashikaga Takauji.svg, Mark of shogun

Ashikaga Takauji also known as Minamoto no Takauji was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. ...

(1305-1358) 後花園天皇花押.png, Mark of Emperor Go-Hanazono (1418-1471) Kaō of Tokugawa Ieyasu.svg, Mark of shogun

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

(1543-1616) Hideki Tojo signature.svg, Mark of prime minister

Hideki Tojo was a Japanese general and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1941 to 1944 during the Second World War. His leadership was marked by widespread state violence and mass killings perpetrated in the name of Japanese nationalis ...

(1884-1948) Joint letter of Five Elders (of Toyotomi).jpg, Marks of members of the

Council of Five Elders In the history of Japan, the was a group of five powerful formed in 1598 by the Toyotomi Hideyoshi, shortly before his death the same year. While Hideyoshi was on his deathbed, his son, Toyotomi Hideyori, was still only five years old and a ...

Vietnam

Huaya spread to Vietnam after Vietnamese independence from China. It was referred to as . It was widely used during the

Lê dynasty The Lê dynasty, also known in historiography as the Later Lê dynasty (, chữ Hán: 朝後黎, chữ Nôm: 茹後黎), officially Đại Việt (; Chữ Hán: 大越), was the longest-ruling List of Vietnamese dynasties, Vietnamese dynasty, h ...

with both the Nguyễn and

Trịnh Trịnh is a Vietnamese language, Vietnamese Vietnamese family name, family name. It exists in Calque, equivalent forms in other languages of the Sinosphere such as (Zheng (surname), 鄭, Zheng, Cheng) in Chinese language, Chinese and Korean languag ...

lords using their own . These are seen in letters to Japan and other nations. File:Nguyen Letter Seal 示.svg, The on a 1635 letter to Japan. File:Nguyen Letter Seal 書2.svg, The on a 1684 letter to Japan. File:Nguyen Letter Seal 曉示.svg, This "曉示 hiểu thị" is from a 1606 letter by Nguyễn Hoàng 阮潢 to Tokugawa Ieyasu 徳川家康. File:阮潢 letter to 源家康.jpg, Mark of Nguyễn Hoàng (阮潢; 1525-1613) seen on a copy of a letter from Japan. File:Letter by Minister Phúc Nghĩa Hầu of Cochinchina to the King of Japan.jpg, A seen on a letter from Phúc Nghĩa Hầu (福義侯) to the “King of Japan”.

References