I’m Bill Tsutsui with another Postcard from Asia from the Center for East Asian Studies.
With 8,000 years of history behind them, Chinese naming conventions are well-established. For “well-established” read “numerous.” Here are just a few: surname comes first and given name, last. So, for example, Deng Xiaoping is Mr. Deng not Mr. Xiaoping. Siblings and cousins in one generation often share a common character in their given names. So, for instance, Deng Xiaoping’s brother is named Deng Liaoping. Politics can even influence name choices. Thus, during the Cultural Revolution, the name Hong was popular because it means “red” or “revolution”. One can’t help wondering if any post-Communism babies will be named “free enterprise”.
With thanks to Jun Fu for this text, from the Center for East Asian Studies, I’m Bill Tsutsui. Wish you were here.
