Each year, hundreds of thousands of new Chinese go abroad to study or live in western countries, and the very first tasks for them to do is to create an English name. Even people who stay in China sometimes use their English names in schools and companies as well. It is not hard to predict that such a trend would continue to be popular in the future, yet the reasons behind it are much more profound than we usually think.
A common explanation for Chinese people to adopt English names is the complicated pronunciation of Chinese characters. Although Chinese can be written down as English letters since the introduction of Pinyin in the 1950s, the pronunciation of some Pinyin syllables, such as zhi, xi, qi, are distinct from that of English. These discrepancies significantly result in mispronunciations of Chinese names by English-speakers, and can lead to inconveniences in communications.
However, not all Chinese names have this trouble. For example, one of my Chinese friends has a Chinese name Yuan Yao, but he still creates himself an English name Yannick, which is even longer than the Chinese one. When asked why he chose this name, Yannick said: “‘Yuan' is a little bit weird, it is not like any English name at all.”
What we can infer from his response is the concern that an English name makes one assimilate (mix) into Western culture better. Such concern is reasonable. In the Westerner's point of view, an English name is a sign for Chinese to accept their values, thereby reducing the culture gap. In contrast, staying with one’s Chinese name might be interpreted as having a mindset closer to a typical Chinese, which makes one more likely to be isolated.
Besides the wish to fit more quickly into Western culture, the desire to create ones own identity through a new English name also accounts for the phenomenon. In fact, this motivation has been ingrained in Chinese tradition for thousands of years.
In ancient China, people used to have several names: birth names, zi, hao, etc. Zi, a courtesy name to address each other, and hao, the name which “shine a light on a different side of their characters or reflect a valuable experience from their lives,” are both created by oneself. [1] Although this tradition is no longer popular in modern China, Chinese people transplant the idea of hao into making their English names. Such a notion can be exemplified by strange names like Fire, with the meaning of passion, and Wolf, which represents personal characteristics.
Hao also influenced the English name trend in a subtle way. Conventionally, Chinese rituals and rules of social interaction do not favor the use of our given names with non-acquaintances, says linguistic professor David C.S. Li from the Hong Kong Institute of Education. [2] Therefore, it is sometimes awkward for Chinese people to address each other, as given names are too intimate while full names are too formal. An English name, surprisingly, seems to be the best choice in these situations. It enables people to address each other’s name in a more comfortable tone, and thus benefits social interactions by avoiding an embarrassing atmosphere.
As for choosing an English name, Chinese people have their own ways. The popular one is to find an English name that is “relevant” to their Chinese names. The relevance can be spelling, pronunciation, or meaning. Another way is to choose the name of one’s favorite character, such as a singer, author, actor, etc. All these different methods create a huge variety of English names. However, some names that Chinese people come up with are inappropriate, and this even creates an emerging business. According to The Telegraph, a British woman earned ￡48,000 (about $60,000) in 2016 by advising Chinese people on how to choose proper English names. [3]
Even though the trend of choosing English names for Chinese people is becoming more and more popular, there are also a few opinions against it. Jialing Huang, a Chinese student studying in the US, said that this would “confuse others with two or more names.” [4] Her statement is not unwarranted. Here at PRISMS, such confusion occurs every day. For example, some American students would be totally confounded when seeing an official document with Chinese names on it. In addition, Chinese people with identical English names may also cause confusion sometimes, especially when their last names are not shown.
Another important point is that lots of Americans are eager to use students' Chinese names to show their respect. While Chinese people think that changing one’s Chinese name into an easily pronounced English name makes others’ life more convenient, it is exactly this act that makes some Americans doubtful. “I don’t know why people would voluntarily use a different one name” is a response that is frequently heard.
Inevitably, between keeping a Chinese name to maintain one’s real identity and adopting a new English name to make life easier, there is not an always a right choice.
Reference:
[1] Wu, Haiyun. "How Chinese People Make Western Names for Themselves." Six Tone. N.p., 08 Nov. 2016. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
[2] Chan, Cherie. "Why Some Chinese Speakers Also Use Western Names | Asia | DW.COM | 08.01.2016." DW.COM. N.p., 01 Aug. 2016. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
[3] Sawer, Patrick. "Teenager Makes Small Fortune Giving Chinese Babies English Names." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 07 Sept. 2016. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
[4] Studentu, Voa. "Why Chinese Students Don’t Need an English Name – Student Union." Student Union. N.p., 16 July 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.
[5] Hsu, Huan. "What's up with Chinese People Having English Names?" Slate Magazine. N.p., 27 Apr. 2009. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.