Why Do Chinese People Have Western Names? | Chinese and Asian Culture

Have you ever wondered why Chinese have western names? You are not the only one. This question is actually the most common question I´ve been asked by non-Chinese speakers. In this video, I´m going to explain to you the reason behind of it.

#Chineseculture #Chinese #China

[dmitryratov]

When I was in Beijing studying Chinese (quite a while ago) I met chinese students who learned Russian and it was quite funny to know that each of them had chosen a russian first name. And it was not due to the fact that their chinese names were difficult to remember. They had chosen russian names just because they studied Russian))) It was and it is a tradition for those who study foreign languages to choose a name belonging to the language they learn... But!... Anyway I think those students had their russian names only for the period of their

[intercool]

Great video, you have inspired me to develop a topic I was thinking of covering for a while now. I am not Chinese, but I lived in China, I have a Chinese name and I am very proud of it. Good work bro, Keep it up !

[anaalyscebaker]

Thank you for the history and explanation. I am starting to work more Chinese people in China and want to be educated about the culture ❤

[saarahi]

I remembered your chinese name lol. Your name is unique and beautiful i personally believe it shouldnt be replaced with a western name as the west should learn to pronounce and say your name instead of you have a name they are familiar with! Im not sure though as im Indian and all my Indian friends in the UK kept their Indian name! Such an interesting culture difference :) thank you for educating me

[kiwifruitkl]

the Chinese Ginger: can you remember my Chinese name?
me: sure, I can. It's 姜宇飞. I also know Laura Gao's Chinese name 高宇洋. Both of you have the same character (universe).
also me: Chinese American here. Born in China. Came at the age of 4 going onto 5. Never bothered with choosing a legal English name for myself because I want the freedom to change my English name at will. I once called myself Karen became it reminded me of that cute girl named Karen Brewer in the The Babysitter's Little Sister books, but then that was before the whole meme came along and ruined the name. Sometimes, I choose the English name Kay or Kate or Katie. For me, I want the freedom to choose my own name. I also want some anonymity. Using an English name provides some anonymity for me, especially in online exchanges and offline conversations.

You said your teacher gave you an English name. Huh. I have heard that western students of Chinese would have their names picked out by the Chinese teacher. Some people would create their own Chinese names. And some people would just transliterate their own personal names into Chinese characters, even if it takes a while to write all the logograms.

I took Spanish class in the US before. In Spanish classes, the teacher just gave us a name bank, and I chose Angela. But the teacher said something that was hard to pronounce so I went with Ana. Easiest name ever in any language. Ana. 安娜。안나. I used that name in ALL my Spanish classes during middle school, high school and university in the USA.

[Zaptrap]

I can believe I found someone who has the same name as me as I was pondering the same question. Hi I am 梁宇飛 🫡

[johnnytries]

I have two names too! one English and a Korean name which is my middle name :P

[mariamali]

Thankyou so much for covering this topic because I didn't have any problem with understanding this but since I myself started teaching chinese in my country to primary school kids their first question always is "what will be my name In" Chinese " or "how translate my name to Chinese " gave me headache😒😒😒
Because I would be teaching something and all out of a sudden someone would ask me this. Now I have more answersss to add to it. Thanks xxx.

[scwyldspirit]

I have a Chinese Girlfriend and her real first name is Xue but goes by Annie.

[javaprogrammer]

It wasn't hard to remember your chinese name

[cynhwon]

For me, it is because the english romanisation of my name does not reflect how it actually sounds, and it is very hard for foreigners to get the right intonation (like you know in cantonese number 9 and c*nt /di*k sound soooo similar xD) so I’ve decided to go by an English name instead. It’s easier that way for me and for everyone else lol

[tamilupt]

They only have western names in western countries! If they're in Russia, they will have a Russian name like Vladimir or if they are in India, they will call themselves something like Sanjay Chan lmao!

[NanosoftRussia]

I remember your chinese name. I can even write it from my memory

[ErnestJay]

Because westerner have a difficult to pronounce Mandarin / Cantonese / Hokkieen names, that's why so many Chinese immigrant use western name like Steven, William, James, Michael, etc

[philippa]

Because there are too many scam calls and companies always give away customers’ details in those English speaking countries. The only places that should have your real name are your school, work place, doctor, insurer and bank.

[babyboo]

You should be proud of your heritage and keep your Chinese names. You don’t see Westerners changing their names to Chinese regardless of where they live. It never feels right when you hear a Chinese person being called by a western name, it just doesn’t fit.

[SomeoneCommenting]

Unless your real name may sound funny or inappropriate in another language and that's why you want to change it, I don't see what's the point with Asians who have simple names as Li, Yun, Tao, Mei, etc. to change their names. I can't believe that Americans have no problems pronouncing Jefferson, Alexander, Bartholomew, etc. and find it so terrible to call someone Wang. It's a *single* freaking syllable! And Asians who change something like Jiang to John have no self esteem. That's like rejecting your true self only to please others. Your Asian name is perfectly pronounceable. Now, if you were some Indonesian guy whose name is Bantamoongearamayang, well, duh! Calling yourself Benjamin would be completely understandable.

[satanshameer]

Most Chinese people who use English names have a chinese name as well