Chinese People React to Hilarious Celebrity Chinese Tattoo Fails

💻 Thanks to Opera for sponsoring this video! Get a browser that’s literally better at everything: opr.as/Opera-browser-xiaomanyc We Westerners love to get Chinese tattoos that are sometimes…a little cringey to Chinese people! And so today I showed a panel of Chinese people some Chinese tattoos from American and Western celebrities to get their reactions, and it turns out many of these tattoos are just total fails from a Chinese perspective.
0:00 Intro
0:28 Sponsored by Opera
1:46 David Beckham
2:27 Justin Bieber
3:02 Britney Spears
3:38 Sean May
4:24 Chris Evans
5:39 Angelina Jolie
6:26 Shawn Marion
6:46 Megan Fox
7:32 Nicki Minaj
8:40 Nick Carter
9:11 Who has the best tattoo?
9:32 Who has the most awkward tattoo?
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[@xiaomanyc]

Thanks to *Opera* for sponsoring this video!!! Your browser is holding you back. Level up with Opera here: opr.as/Opera-browser-xiaomanyc Speaking of cool web browsers from Norway, what are some interesting European languages I could learn???

[@straydeviare6097]

As an English speaker this was a phenomenal video what insight as I have always felt it was odd to get a language tattoo you cannot confirm the meaning if not fluent with it. Cheers Xia!

[@liisaking1247]

Finnish. Other than Estonian, it doesn't resemble anything else (including Hungarian, which everyone keeps saying it's related to. Maybe in the very remote past.) Numbers are particularly "fun", especially the higher you go!

[@user-sm9si1sc8k]

Привет, с Украины🇺🇦💪🙂

[@imezia1]

I guess Norwegian is kind of boring, but our indigenous languages? Saami, got three main varieties too which aren't that similar

[@MuzikJunky]

Luxembourgish! Peace.

[@jengl4401]

I would love to see a reversal of this. I want to see reactions of bad "English" tattoos with Ari explaining what's wrong about them to his group.

[@MarcelNL]

A few days ago I saw a video of a chinese woman (who speaks perfectly English) who faked the reverse: she wrote all sorts of awkward English words on her body and claimed that they meant things like "Honor" and "strength" etc. However, she (probably her boyfriend did that) had written the word "PEE" on her back as a part of this funny video......but had forgotten all about it when she went out that evening. (She mentioned that in the comments.)

[@Murimz]

​@@MarcelNLi saw that short

[@contactgeneralemailforpubl3478]

pee?!?!?!?!

[@GreyMafiaHQ]

just show them japanese “decoration english” like Chris Broad did in one video

[@Lampey22]

“No pen no gain”💪

[@IcyTorment]

I remember a guy on the Internet that wanted "Never give up" in Japanese... The tattoo artist knew enough to actually look up the verb for "give up" but not enough to conjugate it, so the guy ended up with a tattoo that just says "I give up." Fortunately, that one's actually easy to fix, compared to some things people get.

[@ethiopiazoldyk4667]

Damn 😂😂

[@uhuraenterprise6372]

Game over😅

[@kallel5155]

That's hilarious 😂

[@lipstickvenus4602]

I wanted to get a series of words tattooed in hindi, including "empathy." I chose a few word options and asked a hindi speaking friend to help me finalize. She and her daughter couldn't agree on the right word. They explained "empathy" can be mistaken for "pity" or "charity" depending on the context. I decided against getting the tattoo.

[@danilg4486]

You should've asked how to write "stupidity"

[@YourPalHDee]

Good, you don't speak Hindi, so why get a Hindi tattoo?

[@unknowjlm]

Your last decision was the best one indeed....

[@danielrobinson4067]

​@@YourPalHDeeThey didn't.

[@ockertoustesizem1234]

At first I was worried but then I was relieved after reading your last sentence

[@djsapien3448]

There was this UFC video game where a character has a tattoo which was supposed to say "winds of pain" but it said "痛風" which means gout.😂

[@user-zo1rn1zt8p]

可以翻译成 风之伤

[@DoingYerMum]

The irony of him having an english tattoo that says "I will miss you" on his neck

[@rivetRnC]

My thoughts exactly man

[@vegangabriel]

Yep, all while they sat there and made fun of all the Americans with Chinese tattoos that they considered basic or cheesy. 😂

[@zloidooraque0]

yeah, stich tatoo is so much smarter than "power" ahahah =``````) and not basic at all mind you. and all other tatoos on this man arn't cheesy ahahahah. im gonna die laughing GRATITUDE is so much better than POWER ahahahahahah =```````````````````)))

[@heckoff7904]

I think, to be fair, getting lyrics tattooed is less kitschy than the contents of the lyrics. He said it was a lyric that was popular "in his generation."

[@frankieslight]

Lmfao seeing the actual pictures has me weak AF 😂😂 that's what you were showing them!? “可以”

[@ttytty6940]

On the other hand tattoo 不可以🤣🤣

[@nyurons]

The phonetics of "monster bird camphor" sounds like "Matrix" when pronounced in Japanese 😂

[@zloidooraque0]

they just don't understand that japanese and chinese characters are the same lol they are even asking "why not get japanese tatoo and it has to be chinese??" while looking at the character that is the same and means the same in chinese and japanese

[@feelingveryattackedrn5750]

@@zloidooraque0the matrix wouldn’t be spelled with Chinese characters in Japanese though, since it’s an American word. They would just katakana. Alternatively if they wanted to translate it to Japanese kanji it wouldn’t have those three characters. It’s confusing

[@kokuhakuqiun4215]

Bruh this is why you need to ask people who know that language so you can get grammatically correct meanings. Google translate means nothing when dropping bands to get get that permanent ink.

[@Nicholas.Tsagkos]

There is a Greek tatoo on a Chinese saying ΔΩΡΕΑΝ ! However, in Greek we have two words for free, a free man is ελευθερος (eleftheros) but for example free samples are δωρεάν (no charge), so the chinese used the wrong word dorean which means no charge instead of eletheria which means freedom.

[@buzuxi]

That's messed up. I'm Greek maybe he can just say it means "gifted". Since the word free is tied to the word gift, meant something that is complimentary literally gifted to you. But would still sound silly to a Greek reader

[@Adam-hs9ft]

I kind of want to learn every language that uses a different alphabet so i can find these stupid tattoos out in the wild lmao

[@ibrahim-sj2cr]

plenty of arabic tattoo fails

[@subn0rma1]

You can learn hiragana and katakana in one day. You can learn kanji if you spend the rest of your life and half of your next one studying it.

[@bexactlyyy]

And just be like 'tee hee hee"! Everytime u pass by a tattooed person! 😂

[@Adam-hs9ft]

@@bexactlyyy and there's a lot of them in my city so free serotonin time lmao

[@Adam-hs9ft]

@@subn0rma1 in one day? How?

[@krismas6857]

I think this is so fascinating and would LOVE more videos comparing and contrasting cultures like this!

[@allegra6425]

Thanks to you and your channel I‘ve reencountered my love for learning languages, it’s just so amazing to see you communicating with all of these people ❤

[@theanonymousmrgrape5911]

It’s interesting in Angelina Jolie’s case, she chose to express a concept with very deep roots in Western culture, the momento mori (reminder that all are doomed to die), through the language and script of a society that not only lacks that tradition, but has extremely strict taboos around discussing death. And it’s interesting to see how confused and bewildered people from that culture are, reading it, because obviously, they don’t come from a cultural context where public acknowledgements of mortality are a longstanding tradition.

[@adamweinberg2532]

They were already confused as to how a Westerner might be willing to live near a cemetery. I bet they'd be shocked to learn that many pray at ossuaries and to the bones of saints.

[@rafa_c]

🤦🏻

[@vde1594]

shawn marion's ``魔鳥樟'' is the Japanese pronunciation. 魔（ma）鳥(tori）樟（kusu） matorikusu=matrix Justin Bieber's "曲" is represented in Japanese by this kanji alone: SONG.

[@phbm725]

well japanese kanji is the same as traditional Chinese characters

[@BenjaminBattington]

@@phbm725 The characters are the same but the exact meanings can be different. In fact, this is true even among different forms of Chinese

[@vde1594]

@@phbm725 it's not exactly same and i am talking about pronunciation. And I'm japanese and learning chinese for many years and lived there 4 year's. Sorry for my broken English

[@ethanmye-rs]

You have no idea how useful videos like these are. I don’t have enough vocabulary to follow along completely, but do get to understand some random words and phrases (like the death/4 discussion). More of these videos would be awesome!

[@patrickwalsh5153]

When I was deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq, I would prank people by mistranslating their Chinese character tattoos. They couldn't google it at the combat outposts because of lack of internet connection. I couldn't read or speak Chinese because I'm half Korean and half Irish, but they believed me anyway. I also got the other Korean guys in my unit to collaborate, so we'd meet once a month and decide what we'd tell people their tattoo meant. We convinced one guy that the Chinese character on his neck said, "Male Genitals".

[@nocheckmarkgames]

ya know Ive been watching this channel for a while. And It truly has made me believe that the world would be better off if everyone could speak to each other. Everywhere you go you are met with Kindness and Curiosity.

[@donb.puryearjr.8699]

This is a great vlog, I enjoyed seeing extended interaction.....and as an American you fit in so well. More please!!!😊

[@Ifitallfails]

Very interesting to hear their perspectives, thank you

[@regular-thing]

This was so charming. Cool to see all these guys' curiosity at this silliness lmao

[@buckythewarrior5524]

The gent on the left has a No Face tattoo from Spirited Away, love it

[@DubThaDetailer]

Monster Bird Camphor 💀 LMAO.....More vids like this please! Excellent as always Xiaoma!!

[@carrottopevans]

That was so fascinating!

[@vajkosd]

In China to say their version of "May God be with you" was often traditionally before the cultural revolution, Amituofo 阿彌陀佛, many people in Taiwan and HK, and even in California among the communities that immigrated before the cultural revolution, still say Amituofo as a main greeting and goodbye. It means something like "May Amitabha Buddha's light shine on you" as Amituofo is the Chinese pronunciation of Amitabha Buddha, the Buddha of infinite light ;)

[@BouillaBased]

I'm definitely not fluent enough in Chinese to determine for myself whether it should be tattooed on my body. I even had to check with some friends to make sure the Chinese name some of my students gave me wasn't insulting.

[@TheMasonK]

It’s really interesting just you asking Chinese people about pop culture in general. It’s interesting to hear their thoughts on it.

[@smegul1464]

Awesome work xiaomanyc

[@liisaking1247]

Monster Bird Camphor and the guy is in a *Phoenix* jersey. Maybe that's what he was trying for. A phoenix is a kind of monstrous bird that dies and is reborn. Even so, it seems as bad a miss as the "May" one.

[@FightTheCylons]

Thanks that was really interesting

[@MusicRainfield]

Love the tattoos on the guy on the left!

[@MyVinylRips]

Haha, this was very entertaining!

[@TheStickCollector]

That sure is a thumbnail alright

[@thesincitymama]

I like these guys 😎 cool video format

[@em0_tion]

"You don't put bumper stickers on a Ferrari." 😂

[@ToRung]

Nice to see you💞 ✌🥰

[@NehauonElAprendizDelMundo]

Damn, you haven’t changed a bit since high school! Good for you

[@Dogjitsu]

Can you do another fake terrible tattoo prank/walk around? That was so funny, one of my favourite videos

[@kanaric]

lol I didn't expect them to associate god of the sea with poseiden. I mean ya that's what i would too but I didn't think that would be the Chinese context as well.

[@giraffeinagstring]

I loved this video

[@Bebtelovimab]

Xiaoma delivering the fresh angles

[@brettmaddan3255]

This is a straight up roast. Hilarious!

[@vic123]

I nearly spat my water out at "may I have" lmaooooooo dude's a full clown

[@Natefirethemagnets]

This reminds me of college biology lab twenty years ago. My Chinese biology lab partner grabbed my old navy shirt sleeve and read my sleeve. It said East Coast West Coast or something like that. I had no idea.

[@imezia1]

Saw a girl who had "cheap" tattoed on her ankle. Asked her what it meant, she said it was a "C" for "Camille" and her bestie "Christine" had gotten the same one while on vacation in like, Bulgaria. Not China at least. Didn't have the heart to tell her, I mean unlikely that many sees it and knows. But imagine getting tattoos in a language you are not the least bit familiar with, since when does chinese have an equivalent to C at all like

[@uhuraenterprise6372]

Maybe she's cheap😅

[@animeentranced1130]

I wanted to hear what he was going to say about what you would have to do to get a tattoo of guan gong.

[@ArtFreeman]

Japanese people do the same thing with English. When I lived there I often laughed at this things

[@bhambhole]

That tablet or its case is funky. What kind is it?

[@IcyTorment]

I do wonder why Jolie didn't just get a "memento mori" tattoo, if that's what she wanted.

[@ThatGoth]

Opera wasn't out till 1996 and there were 26 other browsers that came before it from 1990-1996... (Damn I feel old now)... So it wasn't really one of the first unless the person who comes last in a race of 27 people is also "one of the first".

[@danilg4486]

Useful comment....

[@rsmith02]

1996 is only a year after Internet Explorer so still pretty early. It was a wild time then and nobody knew which would become standard.

[@danhard8440]

bro they are eating like its their first time ever🤣

[@hannahh6793]

Do more, do more, do more! This was great! But really though... why not Japanese or Korean writing/words? Great point. Or anywhere else for that matter.

[@ermenegilde]

Japanese use chinese characters too! And sometimes the meaning is still the same

[@Toketildeath]

That dudes rocking a sweet Stitch Tat!

[@Oceanic83]

An old co-worker told me that one day, him and his Chinese buddy were at a party. They were talking to this guy that got Chinese characters tattooed on his arm. The tattoo artist told him that the two characters meant something like 'honor' and 'respect.' But his Chinese buddy looked at them and chuckled. Because they literally translated to 'big China.'

[@Blend3rman]

​@kitbogashows1a scammer impersonating a scam fighter? Honestly some low effort bs

[@yeboiepiktrix524]

Saw a tattoo that had "这是纹身" on it

[@binaway]

I remember the story of a woman who knitted her own sweater with Chinese writing she copied from a menu. Translated into English it said- a tasty dish.

[@StephenSternGoth]

This is very informative I don't have any tattoos but I certainly won't get any trying to glorify spirituality in the future

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

This kind of reminds me of Chinese people choosing a Western (often English) first name to use when working in an International setting. Some times however the choice doesn’t… quite come across as they would have intended. When they pick a nape that is common, like Lucy, Keith, John or Amanda, no one will bat an eyelid. But some times they’ll pick a word. It can get slightly confusing (for the longest time I was in daily email exchanges with someone called Moon and I had no idea if I was working with a man or a woman until we exchanged wishes for the Lunar New Year). Some times it gets… interesting. Like when I received a report I requested and it came from someone who had chosen to go through life as Kitten (male profile picture). That gave me an “Eh?” moment. I asked a linguist about it and the combination with his surname apparently had a positive connotation. My guess is no one went through the trouble of going through the actual translation and the cultural associations Western, English speaking people have with the first name Kitten. If I were ever to choose a Chinese (or Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Hindi… you get the point) tattoo, I’d not only do very thorough research and check with various independent experts, I’d do my best to check the cultural meanings and associations the word or phrase would elicit for someone native to the culture. And not just in itself, but also if tattooed on a body AND taking into account WHERE it would be placed. Example: even in English, a tattoo saying Jesus comes across very differently if it’s tattooed on an arm as opposed to tattooed on a butt cheek. Not that I ever think I’ll be brave enough to get permanent ink. I’m too much of a coward for that. As a friend puts it: you get a strapping oak and ten years later it’s a blurry weeping willow because of gravity. Or you get a dolphin and ten years later it’s a whale because everything is better with bacon. Perhaps a disrespectful way of putting it, but it gave me pause. And… I’m terrified of the idea of getting a tattoo and it accidentally gets misspelled before you can catch it and correct it.

[@uhuraenterprise6372]

If you get a tattoo on your back it doesn't change shape😊

[@dannyscales168]

Did you have to feed them to get them to do the video with you?🤣 Ravenously eating ramen 🍜

[@Brucelee-pv6uf]

0:50 are u from Norway?

[@SuuooberCuber]

可以 is really funny 😂😂

[@Morgan_Layfay]

They should know that scissor tattoos are actually the best identifier of a hairstylists in the US, or a straight blade 😂

[@ttytty6940]

What about the 柠檬姐 lemonade lady 😂failed Chinese tattoo 🤣🤣🤣

[@tomekt2406]

I was thinking you would show them the fake tattoo you once had on your shoulder - the foreigner ;) but it wasn't

[@emiiluma]

just got an ad with xiaoma in it while watching xiaoma

[@magisterc4t66]

Omg it would be wayyy worse if the 可以(may) tattoo was 六月(6th month) LOL

[@MonikyuPiii]

I want to get "I love my mom" in the Chinese equivalent of Times New Roman font on my chest.

[@ttytty6940]

I love my mom= 我爱我妈 I’m mama’s boy = 我是妈宝 Tattoo both “I love my mom , I’m mama’s boy” 我爱我妈， 我是妈宝😂 In traditional Chinese characters 我愛我媽，我是媽寶

[@MonikyuPiii]

@@ttytty6940 😳😂😂😂😂😂

[@johnsonnguyen3114]

The two just eating and not even looking at the screen lol

[@willvr4]

I get that Chinese and Japanese characters look cool, but it is a weird concept to get words written on you that you don't understand. I've never seen an Asian person with English writing on their body until now haha

[@watchdog163]

And it was also a weird sentence 😂

[@catboy721]

I think these guys are more interested in the food than in the inter-cultural exercise.

[@wallysls]

2:50 Well, he has a point 😏

[@EmeryProductions]

20 years ago when you were still in high school? how old is this guy?

[@sy2see]

It just goes to prove that if you’re going to get a tattoo, make sure you do some research first, and possibly ask a local whether it is considered insulting.

[@petrino]

am 100% norwegian. seeing people get modern "viking" tattoos makes me cringe harder than your friends did in this video.

[@craigbeavers8764]

Fun!

[@robj2704]

I'd be curious to ask each person what they think their tattoo means.

[@nerd26373]

Seems like you two have remarkable chemistry all throughout. We wish you nothing but the absolute best.

[@helloitsayaa]

可以 😂😂

[@trick7884]

"that's basic. we're hair dressers. we wouldn't get a tattoo that says 'hair', 'scissor', 'cut'." lmao

[@felixzapata9058]

The Chinese character tattoos are cool but I wouldn't want anything that I couldn't read...reminds me of an episode of Big Bang Theory when Sheldon asked Penny why she had the Chinese character "laundry" tattooed on her back...lol...

[@user-ez6zu6xc7f]

"I MISS YOU" is also weird

[@melaniegrace7707]

As an American I also find it very strange that anyone would live next to a cemetery

[@soaf1985]

I have met quite a few people where I am who live next to one. One woman I work with, you can see the cemetery outside one of the bedroom windows. Personally, I couldn't do it.

[@melaniegrace7707]

@@soaf1985 oh yea I definitely see it all the time, I just don’t get why people choose it. I’m sure it is cheaper so there’s some incentive if that’s the case

[@rsmith02]

You worried about ghosts?

[@buzuxi]

Many people and cultures are actually like that. I wouldn't have a problem, but no way my mom would live next to one.

[@someoneelse6934]

I want one that says “I don’t understand Mandarin” in Mandarin of course.

[@Eztoez]

More interesting than hilarious.

[@Happy_Biker]

How many of the awkward ones could be "repaired" by adding more characters?

[@amandaphillips4344]

I never thought about this,but is it considered offensive or weird that non Chinese ppl getting Chinese tattoos?

[@-RONNIE]

I think getting another cultures tattooed on you is fine as long as it's respectful 👊🏻

[@Bertranddeghaul]

missed opportunity to add your own kung pao chicken from an earlier vid about tatoos in there as a joke.

[@CreoleQ393]

Not a lot of Americans get chinese tatoos. Out of my whole existence of living Nicki is the only american i ever seen with a chinese tatoo. Your tablet look like a toddler tablet with that case

[@mcRydes]

wait maybe I missed it, but what did Sean May's tattoo actually mean? Apart from his name. . .

[@Nicolettidaniel]

josh peck is that you

[@andrewcosten]

I like the Japanese tattoo's

[@jasufinland]

So do not tattoo NOODLES on your Skin :P Hi from Finland =) u r awesome

[@rivetRnC]

Moi. Finnish language is awesome! I love finnish rap and metal. All the best to you

[@glanguish9390]

He didn't pull out his 'Kung Pao' tattoo to show the lads. Was it on his right arm??

[@kycutecool5891]

Monster Bird Camphor Can you imagine having that on you in English

[@MrClarkisgod]

I want a tattoo that says Orange Chicken.

[@petergrandien1440]

I will go to China and get a tattoo that translates to in Swedish, Två åksjuka barn i baksätet 后座有二晕车子

[@taylorrosepole]

Haha there are hair dressers who get scissor tattoos 😂

[@frenchmontana4348]

Wow you almost have not changed since high school

[@njnowell]

I got a Chinese tattoo I can show you? To see if it’s right or not.