Henry in Chinese

Henry in Chinese

亨瑞
Hēng Ruì

Henry is a regal, classic name meaning 'ruler.' Its Chinese versions lean strong and fortunate — 亨瑞 echoes the sound and means good fortune; 刚毅 is firm and resolute.

3 ways to write Henry
亨瑞
Hēng Ruì
Sound + meaning Recommended

亨 ('hēng') means smooth-going and prosperous and opens the classic Chinese 'Hen-'; 瑞 ('ruì') echoes the '-ry' and means a fortunate sign. Recognizable as Henry, and a wish for good fortune.

  • hēng smooth-going, prosperous (the classic first character for Henry)
  • ruì a fortunate sign, a good omen, good tidings

    The left side of 瑞 is 王, the jade radical — in early script, this was drawn as three horizontal lines connected by a vertical…

    Read the full story of 瑞 →
亨利 Hēng Lì By sound

亨利 is the established Chinese name for Henry — the form used for kings and famous names. 亨 itself means smooth-going and prosperous.

  • hēng smooth-going, prosperous (for the 'Hen' sound)
  • benefit, advantage (for the 'ry' sound)
刚毅 Gāng Yì By meaning

For Henry's regal, ruling strength: 刚 is firm and principled, 毅 is resolve. An unbending, leaderly name.

  • gāng firm, principled, unyielding

    The traditional form 剛 is built from two elements: 冈 (gāng), the ridgeline of a mountain, and 刂, the blade radical.

    Read the full story of 刚 →
  • resolve, steadfast determination

    The character 毅 contains 豕 (shǐ, wild boar) in its lower portion — an animal that early Chinese observers described as one that…

    Read the full story of 毅 →
About the name Henry

Origin: Germanic. Home ruler; estate ruler.

Henry comes from a Germanic root meaning home ruler — a name of kings and steady, classic dignity. It has never gone out of style.

In Chinese, Henry’s familiar writing begins with 亨, which itself means smooth-going and prosperous. Stronger still is a version meaning firm and resolute — the bearing of a leader. Each character is brushed by hand on rice paper.

The characters in these names

Each of these characters has its own story — etymology, cultural weight, and how a native speaker reads it. Tap through to the full entry.

Keep exploring
Made to order
Fully Customizable

Bring 亨瑞 home — choose how you'd like it brushed.

The studio workbench — rows of wolf- and goat-hair brushes, ink stones, and carved seals
Each piece is hand-brushed to order by Artist Lina Sun — ink on rice paper, never printed. Ships worldwide.