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One of the best Japanese Kanji dictionary.
The kanji most commonly used for "Eagle" is 鷲.
鷲
eagle
Also associated with raptor.
Onyomi: ju, shuu Kunyomi: washi 23 strokes Jinmeiyō
鷲 (washi) is the eagle — the bird radical 鳥 under 就, which lends the sound. It is a rarer, heavier character than most animal kanji: twenty-three strokes, outside the Jōyō list, and all the more imposing for it.
Japan’s most famous eagles are in proper names: 鷲 appears in surnames like 鷲尾 (Washio), and the constellation Aquila is 鷲座, “the Eagle”. The great Buddhist “Vulture Peak” of the sutras is 霊鷲山 — the mountain of the sacred eagle.
The neighbouring bird is 鷹 (taka), the hawk — smaller, and far more prominent in Japanese culture through falconry (鷹狩) and the proverb 能ある鷹は爪を隠す, “the skilled hawk hides its talons”. If you want the raptor as an emblem of held-back strength, Japanese tradition actually points to the hawk.
鷲 is a strong, legitimate choice — the eagle, with no slang or unlucky senses — and its density of strokes reads as deliberate. Know that in Japanese symbolism the hawk 鷹 carries more cultural weight (falconry, hidden talent); the eagle reads more Western, which may be exactly what you want.
What is Onyomi?
Onyomi, also known as the "Sino-Japanese reading," is one of the two main reading systems for kanji characters in Japanese. It refers to the reading of a kanji character that is derived from the original Chinese pronunciation.
What is Kunyomi?
Kunyomi, also known as the "native Japanese reading," is one of the two main reading systems for kanji characters in Japanese. It refers to the reading of a kanji character that is based on the native Japanese pronunciation. Kunyomi readings are often used when a kanji character stands alone or is followed by hiragana, as in verbs and adjectives. Mastering both kunyomi and onyomi is crucial for understanding and using kanji effectively in the Japanese language.
What is Radical?
A radical, also known as "bushu" in Japanese, is a fundamental component of kanji characters. Radicals are the building blocks of kanji and are used to categorize and organize them in dictionaries. There are 214 traditional radicals, each with its own meaning, which often provides a clue to the meaning of the kanji character it forms.
What is strokes?
Stroke count, or "kakusuu" in Japanese, refers to the number of individual brushstrokes required to write a kanji character. Each kanji has a specific stroke order and stroke count, which are essential for writing the character correctly and legibly. Understanding and following the correct stroke order not only ensures proper balance and aesthetics but also makes writing more efficient and fluid.