Names in the World of Avatar

In the World of Avatar, names are drawn from a wide variety of languages and sources. Though many names transliterated into Chinese characters, the form of writing used in Avatar, most names are in fact not Chinese, and are either derived from other languages or completely fictional.

People
The format of this list of name translations is: Name - Traditional Hanzi (simplified Hanzi if different) - Mandarin Pronunciation in Hanyu Pinyin/Pronunciation in other languages - English translation. Because many characters' names are never seen written on screen, and because it is impossible to guess the correct characters to write a name without knowing its meaning, Chinese characters may not be given for all names.
 * A note on East Asian names: Personal names in China and Korea are usually one or two characters chosen to have an auspicious meaning, while given names in Japanese can sometimes be three. Surnames always come before the given name, and are almost always one character in China and Korea, but usually two characters in Japan.
 * Readers should also note that the simplified characters in the translations on this page (the characters in brackets) are not used in the show. They are merely used as a reference for those unable to read traditional Chinese characters.

Main characters

 * Aang: - Peaceful soaring.
 * Katara: - Probably phonetic. Characters mean "block", "pagoda" and "pull".
 * Sokka: - Probably phonetic. Characters mean "inquire" and "block".
 * Toph Beifong: - Surname means "North region" and given name means "expanding hibiscus". In "Tales of Ba Sing Se", her name is written on the title card as, meaning "entrusted man", likely due to an error.
 * Zuko: - Resurrected rule. On his wanted poster, his name was written with the characters, meaning "ancestor robber". This was likely intended to insult him.
 * Iroh: - Probably phonetic, since the first character means "Chinese mugwort" (a flower, which is not used to name males), and the second character is the name of a river in China.
 * Appa: - Characters mean "Cypress".
 * Momo: - Transliteration of Japanese word "momo", meaning "peach"; used as a common pet name in Japan (much as "Fido" is used in the west). Characters mean "imitate".

Water Tribe

 * Yue: - Moon.

Earth Kingdom

 * Bumi: - Probably phonetic: characters mean "spread rice". 'Bumi' means earth in Indonesian and Malay.
 * Chin: - Qin was the surname of controversial emperor Qin Shi Huang, who unified China. It referred to the state he ruled prior to conquering the rest of China.
 * Hong Lee (Zuko): - Hong is a traditional Chinese surname meaning "vast" or "deluge"; Lee references the Confucian virtue li, meaning "propriety" or "ritual". He may be named for Li Hong, one of the series' early concept artists.
 * Hong Mushi (Iroh): - Hong is a traditional Chinese surname meaning "vast" or "deluge"; Mushi means "to want to become a scholar".
 * Kyoshi: 虛子 - Japanese: kyoshi - "Empty child"; this was the pen name of the famous Japanese poet Takahama Kiyoshi.
 * Macmu-Ling: - Named after Avatar writer Lauren MacMullan.
 * Miyuki: 美雪 - Japanese: miyuki - Beautiful snow (common Japanese girl's name). Named after storyboard artist Miyuki Hoshikawa.
 * Oh: 吳 - Korean: o - Oh (Wu in Chinese) is a common surname in Korea. It refers to the ancient Kingdom of Wu in China. Named after animator Seung-Hyun Oh.
 * Oma: 奧瑪 (奥玛) - Korean: oma - Mysterious Carnelian.
 * Oyaji 親父 (亲父) - Japanese: oyaji - Japanese informal term for "dad".
 * Pao: - Bao is a traditional Chinese surname meaning "To cover". It is a pun of the character 泡 (pāo), meaning to boil tea.
 * Pu-on Tim: 浦安添 - Cantonese: pu on tim - Pu is a traditional Chinese surname meaning "beach"; On-Tim means "Increasing Peace". Named after Avatar writer Tim Hedrick.
 * Shu: - Shu is a traditional Chinese surname meaning "relax".
 * The Boulder: - Big rock.
 * Xin Fu: - Xin is a traditional Chinese surname meaning "bitter"; Fu means "wealth".
 * Aunt Wu: - Wu is a rare Chinese surname meaning "sorceress" or "shaman".
 * Yu: - Yu is a common Chinese surname meaning "surplus".

Fire Nation

 * Chan (Fire Nation admiral): - Cantonese: chan - Chen/Chan is a very common Chinese surname referring to the ancient State of Chen in central China. Named after writer May Chan.
 * Chan (Fire Nation blacksmith): - Cantonese: chan - See above.
 * Chan (teenager): - Cantonese: chan - See above.
 * Chey: 濟 (济) - Korean: che - To ferry; to help.
 * Ding: - Ding is a common Chinese surname meaning "robust" or "masculine".
 * Jeong Jeong: - The sound of tinkling gems.
 * Liang: - Liang is an extremely common Chinese surname meaning "bridge" or "beam".
 * Lu Ten: - Gallop over a road.
 * Mak: 麥 - Cantonese: mak6 - Mak (Mai in Mandarin) is a common Chinese surname meaning "wheat" or "barley".
 * Mongke: - Mongolian: möngke - Mongolian name meaning eternal: Name of the fourth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire who conquered Iraq, Syria and Vietnam.
 * Ogodei: - Mongolian: ögedei - Name of Genghis Khan's third son and second Great Khan of the Mongol Empire.
 * Ozai: - Carry proudly.
 * Sozin: - Revival and progress.
 * Tom-Tom: - Phonetic: characters mean "soup" or "hot water".
 * Yeh-Lu: - Khitan: yelü - the family name of Yelü Chucai, an adviser of Ogedei Khan.

Air Nomads

 * Gyatso - (Tibetan) - Tibetan name meaning "ocean of Wisdom".
 * Pasang - (Tibetan) - Tibetan name meaning "born on Friday".
 * Tashi - (Tibetan) - Tibetan name meaning "good fortune/auspiciousness".

Neutral

 * Pathik - (Hindi) - Hindi name meaning "traveler".

Spirits

 * Hei Bai: - Black and white.
 * La: - Pull.
 * Tui: - Push.
 * Wan Shi Tong: - Hall of ten thousand knowledge.

Main characters

 * Amon: - To cover.
 * Lin Beifong: - Surname means "North region". While it is unusual for her to have taken her mother's surname, it is not unprecedented: in Japan, for example, if a family had no male heir to carry on its name, it would sometimes adopt the daughter's son-in-law in order to ensure the survival of their name.
 * Mako 信 - Japanese: makoto - Mako is an abbreviated version of the Japanese name Makoto, meaning "faithfulness", one of the five Confucian virtues.
 * Tenzin - (Tibetan) - Tibetan name meaning "defender of the faith".
 * Bolin - Chinese male name non-literally meaning "gentle rain".
 * Korra - When anglicized, Greek "Kore" reforms as "Cora", with both names meaning "maiden". Kore is also another name for Persephone, Greek goddess of the underworld, who is described by Homer as a "formidable and powerful young queen".
 * Jinora - Jinorasa is a Sanskrit name meaning "essence of victory", and was the name of a lesser-known Buddhist
 * Ikki - Japanese male name with a few different meanings, though the most appropriate would be "radiance, shine, sparkle"; the literal meaning of the word is "riot, insurrection", with both translations attributing to Ikki's hyperactive tendencies.
 * Naga - In Indonesian and Malay, naga means "dragon"; in Inuktitut, it means "no".
 * Pabu - In Korean, Pabu is a term used for endearment and it can also mean "silly you". In Tibetan, the name Pabu means "puffball".
 * Tahno - Tahno's name is similar to "Tano", alternatively spelled as "Tanoé", a river in Ghana, which would make sense given his waterbending abilities.
 * Tarrlok - name of Irish origin that means "instigator" or "abettor".
 * Saikhan - "beautiful" in Halkh Mongolian.

Republic City

 * Asami Sato: - (Japanese) - Asami is a female Japanese name usually meaning either "morning beauty", "hemp beauty", or "morning sea". Sato (佐藤, Satō) is the most common Japanese surname.
 * Hiroshi Sato: - (Japanese) - Hiroshi is a common male Japanese name with many meanings depending on the characters used. Sato (佐藤, Satō) is the most common Japanese surname.
 * Kuang: - Kuang is a Chinese surname.
 * Lau Gan-Lan: - This name is a pun on the Chinese words 老 (lǎo), meaning "old man" or "Mr." and 甘藍 (gānlán), meaning "wild cabbage": his name could therefore be translated as "Old Man Cabbage" or "Mr. Cabbage". Lau, written with different characters, is also a common Chinese surname.
 * Saikhan: - (Mongolian) - Saikhan is a Mongolian word meaning "beautiful".
 * Shiro Shinobi: - (Japanese) - Shiro is a Japanese name that usually means "fourth child", though it can be written with a number of Kanji. Shinobi (忍び) is a Japanese word that means "sneak", "thief", or "ninja".
 * Song - Song is a fairly common Chinese and Korean surname.

Neutral

 * Pema - (Tibetan) - Tibetan name meaning "lotus flower".
 * Rohan - meaning "to ascend; to rise, to attain great heights" in Hindi/Sanskrit.

Bending arts
The format of this list of location translations is: Bending Art: Traditional Hanzi (Simplified Hanzi if different) - Mandarin Pronunciation (in Hanyu Pinyin) - English translation.


 * Airbending: - Divine ability to halt air.
 * Waterbending: - Divine ability to halt water.
 * Earthbending: - Ability to move earth.
 * Firebending: - Ability to manipulate fire.

Location and organization names
The format of this list of location translations is: Location: Traditional Hanzi (simplified Hanzi if different) - Mandarin Pronunciation (in Hanyu Pinyin) - English translation.

Water Tribe

 * Northern Water Tribe - (literal)
 * Southern Water Tribe - (literal)

Earth Kingdom

 * Earth Kingdom: - (literal)
 * Ba Sing Se: - Eternally Solid City.
 * Cave of Two Lovers: - - (literal)
 * Chin Village: - Name of an ancient state.
 * Full Moon Bay: - (literal)
 * Gan Jin: - Clean.
 * Gaoling: - High Hill.
 * Kyoshi Island - - (literal, see Names section for translation of Kyoshi)
 * Omashu: - Transliteration of word "Omashu", "chéng" means city.
 * Senlin Village: - Forest Village.
 * Serpent's Pass: - Coiled Snake Pass.
 * Si Wong Desert: - Desert of death.
 * South Sea: - (literal)
 * Wan Shi Tong's Library: - (literal, see Names section for translation of Wan Shi Tong)
 * Yu Dao: - Jade Island.
 * Zhang: - Dirty.

Fire Nation

 * Fire Nation: - Raging Fire Nation.
 * Fire Nation Capital: - Imperial Capital City.
 * Capital Island: - (Literal)
 * Crescent Island: - New Moon Island.
 * Dragonbone Catacombs: - (Literal)
 * Ember Island: - (literal)
 * New Ozai (Omashu): - literal; "cheng" means walled city or castle.

United Republic

 * Republic City: - (literal)

Businesses and organizations

 * Ba Sing Se University:
 * Ba Sing Se Zoo: - Name actually means "Happy Zoo".
 * Ember Island Theater:
 * Fancy Lady Day Spa:
 * Green Blaze Inn:
 * Green Flame Inn:
 * Happy Traveler's Opera Troupe:
 * Jasmine Dragon:
 * Kuang's Cuisine: - Literally "Kuang Family Delicacies".
 * Master Yu's Earthbending Academy: -
 * Old Chen's Blacksmith Shop:
 * Pao Family Tea House:
 * Sweet Aroma Tea House:
 * Tasty Hotpot Restaurant:
 * Yu Dao Grocery Store: