Chinese given names (Chinese: 名字; pinyin: míngzì) are often made up of one or two characters. Unlike Western personal names, there is great variety in assigning Chinese given names. Chinese names can consist of any character and contain almost any meaning. Unlike the Western convention, it is extremely frowned upon to name a person after someone else, and cases where people have the same name are almost universally the result of coincidence rather than intention. The common Western practice of naming the children after their parents, ancestors, or historical figures is almost a taboo in Chinese culture. Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ), commonly called Pinyin, is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... Look up Appendix:Most popular given names by country in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Chinese culture has roots going back over five thousand years. ...

In some families, the first of the two characters in the personal name is shared by all members of a generation and these generation names are worked out long in advance. In some families there is a small number of generational names through which are cycled. Together, these generation names may be a poem about the hope or history of the family. There are also other conventions. It is frequently the case that girls will be given names which reflect "feminine" characteristics or be named after plants or flowers. Generation name is half of the two-Chinese character given name given to newborns in the same generation of one surname lineage. ... Poetry (ancient Greek: poieo = create) is an art form in which human language is used for its aesthetic qualities in addition to, or instead of, its notional and semantic content. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... A Phalaenopsis flower Rudbeckia fulgida A flower, (<Old French flo(u)r<Latin florem<flos), also known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also called angiosperms). ...

Chinese females sometimes have doubled names (e.g. Xiu-xiu, Xiao-xiao). This practice also extends to males (e.g. Yoyo Ma), but much less so. Siblings' names are frequently related. For example, one child may be named "sun" while his sister may be named "moon." Classic Yo-Yo album cover Yo-Yo Ma (&#39340;&#21451;&#21451; Pinyin: M&#462; Y&#466;uy&#466;u) (born October 7, 1955) is a world-famous French-Chinese-American cellist. ... The Sun (Latin: Sol) is the star at the center of the Solar System. ... Apparent magnitude: up to -12. ...

Chinese personal names also reflect periods of history. Chinese names often do not just represent the environment or the time. For example, many Chinese born during the Cultural Revolution have revolutionary names such as "strong country" or "eastern wind". In Taiwan, it had been common to incorporate one of the four characters of the name "Republic of China" into masculine names. The title page to The Historians History of the World. ... The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ; literally Proletarian Cultural Great Revolution; often abbreviated to 文化大革命 wénhuà dà gémìng, literally Great Cultural Revolution, or even simpler, to 文革 wéngé, Cultural Revolution) in the Peoples Republic of China was a struggle for power within the... Anthem National Anthem of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Capital (and largest city) Taipei1 Official languages Standard Mandarin (GuóyÇ”), Taiwanese, Aborigine Government Semi-presidential system  -  President Chen Shui-bian  -  Vice President Annette Lu  -  Premier Chang Chun-hsiung Establishment Xinhai Revolution   -  Independence declared October 10, 1911   -  Republic established January 1...

Within families, adults rarely refer to each other by personal names. Adult relatives and children referring to adults generally use a family title such as big sister, second sister, third sister and so on. As is the case in the West, it is considered rude for a child to refer to parents by their given name, but unlike the West this taboo is extended to all adult relatives. This article is about cultural prohibitions in general, for other uses, see Taboo (disambiguation). ...

When speaking of non-family social acquaintances people are generally referred to by a title (for example Mother Li or the Wife of Chu). Personal names are used when referring to adult friends or to children. Occasionally a person will be referred to as "lao" (old) followed by the last name or "xiao" (young) followed by the last name.

Most Chinese also have a "little name" or nickname which their parents and close family and friends call them. These names are generally not used by anyone outside this close circle.

Nicknames are usually alteration of the given name, sometimes they are based on the persons' physical attributes, speaking style or even their first word. In Hokkien- and Cantonese-speaking areas, a nickname will often consist of the diminutive Ah, followed by part of the given name (usually the last character). The nicknames are rarely used in formal or semi-formal settings. One exception to this is Chen Shui-bian who is commonly known as A-bian (or A-biN in Hokkien pronounce) even in more formal settings such as newspaper articles. // A nickname is a name of a person or thing other than its proper name. ... M&#464;n N n (Chinese: &#38313;&#21335;&#35486;), also spelt as Minnan or Min-nan; native name B ; literally means Southern Min or Southern Fujian and refers to the local language/dialect of southern Fujian province, China. ... Standard Cantonese is a variant, and is generally considered the prestige dialect of Cantonese Chinese. ... Chen Shui-bian, President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian (ch. ...

In former times, it was common for males to acquire a zi, or style name, upon reaching maturity, and for prominent people to have posthumous names, and rulers temple names. This is rarely the case now, although Chinese writers will frequently take a pen name. A Chinese style name, sometimes also known as a courtesy name, is an extra name that could be used in place of the given name. ... A posthumous name (Traditional Chinese: 諡號/謚號 Simplified Chinese: 谥号; Pinyin: shì hào; Romaji: shigō/tsuigō; Revised Romanization of Korean: siho) is a honorary name given to royalty in some cultures posthumously, that is, after the persons death. ... Temple names (Traditional Chinese: 廟號 Simplified Chinese: 庙号 Pinyin: miào hào;), are commonly used when naming most Chinese, Vietnamese (such dynasties as Tran,Anterior Lê and Nguyen Dynasty) and most Korean rulers of the Goryeo and Joseon Dynasties. ... A pen name or nom de plume is a pseudonym adopted by an author. ...

Many coastal Chinese have a Western name in addition to the Chinese name. For example, the Taiwanese politician Soong Chu-yu is also known as James Soong. Among American-born Chinese, Canadian-born Chinese, etc., it is common practice to be referred to primarily by the Western name, and the Chinese name is used either (officially or otherwise) as an alternative name, or sometimes, middle name. Recent immigrants tend to use their given Chinese name as the legal name and adopting a Western Given name for casual use only. This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... An American-born Chinese or ABC is a person born in the United States of Chinese ethnic descent. ... A Chinese Canadian is a person of Chinese descent or origin who was born in or immigrated to Canada. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Legal name is the name with which an individual is registered at birth or which appears on their birth certificate. ... Look up Appendix:Most popular given names by country in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In Hong Kong and Macau, some people may have their Chinese given names related to the pronunciation or meaning of their English given names, while many in Taiwan will choose their adoptive English name based on their Chinese given name.

In regions where fortune-telling is more popular, many parents may name their children on the advice of literomancers. The advice are often given based on the number of strokes of the names or the perceived elemental value of the characters in relation to the child's birth time and personal elemental value; rarely on the sound of the name as there is no system of fortune-telling based on character pronunciations. In jurisdictions where it is possible, people may also choose to change their legal given name, or their children's names, in order to improve their fortune. Literomancy (from the Latin litero, letter, mancy prophecy), as its name suggests, is a form of fortune-telling based on letters. ...

Due to varying cultural backgrounds and regional dialects, some names may sound silly and hilarious when spoken in a different community and dialect, although it is considered rude to tease a person's name in such a way.

Common Names in Mainland China

Males

• Wei (伟; Great)
• Jianguo (建国; Build the Country)
• Dong (东; East)
• Jm Leor (伟; d'great)

Females

• Ying (英)
• Ping (萍)
• Xue (雪; Snow, symbolizing purity)

See also

• Chinese surname
• Chinese clan
• Chinese family name
• Generation name
• List of common Chinese surnames
• Naming taboo
• Japanese name
• Korean name
• Vietnamese name
• Hmong Surnames

A Chinese surname, family name (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) or clan name (氏; pinyin: shì), is one of the hundreds or thousands of family names that have been historically used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups in mainland China, Taiwan, and among overseas Chinese communities. ... A Chinese clan is a group of related Chinese people with a common surname and sharing a common ancestor and ancestral village (see clan). ... A Chinese surname, also called a clan name or family name (&#22995;, pinyin: x ng; or &#27663;, shi), is one of the over seven hundred family names used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups. ... Generation name is half of the two-Chinese character given name given to newborns in the same generation of one surname lineage. ... This is a list of the top 100 most common Chinese surnames according to a study published in 2006. ... Naming taboo was a taboo of saying or writing names (specifically characters) of the emperors and ancestors in China and neighboring nations in the ancient Chinese cultural sphere. ... Yamada Tarō (), a typical Japanese name (male), equivalent to John Smith in English. ... The Korean name Hong Gildong (a common anonymous name, like John Doe in American English). ... Vietnamese names generally consist of three parts: a family name, a middle name, and a given name, used in that order. ...

External links

• Chinese name translations and download
• Some western names written in Chinese characters
• Get a Chinese name
• Scholar urges resuming traditional names