Koi Fish Tattoos

What does a koi fish tattoo mean?

The koi's meaning starts with the Dragon Gate legend: on China's Yellow River, koi swim upstream to a waterfall, and the few that leap it turn into dragons. That is why the motif stands for perseverance, beating hard odds and transformation, and why so many designs show the fish mid-leap. In Japan the koi became the Children's Day streamer, a wish for strength and success, and in irezumi it swims among waves, maple leaves or cherry blossoms. Color adds a layer: gold for prosperity, red for love and courage, black for hardship overcome, blue for calm strength. Swimming direction is mostly a matter of composition: an upstream koi echoes the struggle of the legend, and a downstream koi does not mean giving up.

koi fish tattoo meaning