Chinese names for my children

[Benoah]

Hi all, im new here....To make a long story short. Ive got 2 kids and my oldest is from Taipei originally. He has four names and one of them is chinese, now i want my daughter to have a chinese name also. I found the name "Xiao Xing" and it was supposed to mean "Morningstar" but the more i read, the more i find it really means "Little star".....If i wanna say morningstar all i find is "Chen Xing" but im not sure even that is right.....How do i say morningstar?

My sons name is "Jiun Jang" which means "Tall" and "widely to praise" ( so im told ).

Someone help me? I speak very little chinese and i want my daughter to be named Morningstar if possible.

[semantic nuance]

If you insist on using 'morning star', then 晨星 as your pinyin shows is correct.

[doraemon]

For a name that means "morning star", Xiaoxing would be better than Chenxing in my opinion. I also think it's more popular.

Xiaoxing can mean both "morning star" or "little star" depending on which character is used.

小星 means "small star"

晓星 means "morning star"

小 and 晓 have the same pronunciation but because they're different characters, they have completely different meanings. ;)

[1showorigin]

"shiao shin" is a beautiful name except that the pronunciation is identical to the Chinese phrase "Be careful". I would name my daughter "chen Shin" instead to avoid that. "chen Shin" is also a beautiful name.

Very poetic!

[Shi Tong]

I'm no name expert, but have you considered other possibilities with the "star" part of the name? I'm sure there are lots more options.. even things which may mean early star or some such..

[renzhe]

"shiao shin" is a beautiful name except that the pronunciation is identical to the Chinese phrase "Be careful".

Not identical, but similar.

星 is Romanised as xīng in pinyin

心 is xīn

It might be good to pick a different one, if only to avoid the potential jokes.

[Benoah]

Thank you all for the replies, i deeply appreciate all responses.

Regarding other names, its not "morning" or "star" i want in the name, its "morningstar" so it will be difficult to choose other names. Its kinda funny since "be careful" was the first word i learned in chinese right after "Nihao" ( not sure how to spell it, "hi" ).

maybe i should make a poll for using either chen or xiao??? ;)

[skylee]

曉星 morning star of course reminds me of the famous poem about Chang-e - 碧海青天夜夜深. How romantic.

Do you know about the Star Ferry in Hong Kong? All its ferries are named after stars. They include (source) -

曉星(Morning Star 1871-1898), 夜星(Evening Star 1888-1902), (Rising Star 1890-1902), 導星(Guiding Star 1896/97-1903/04), 曉星(二代Morning Star 1897/98-1903/04).

北星(Northern Star 1900/01-1927), 南星(Southern Star 1900/01-1927), 極星(Polar Star 1901-1927), 曉星(三代 Morning Star 1904-1928), 夜星(二代Evening Star 1904-1934), 金星(Golden Star 1924-1968,1953年改柴油引擎), 午星(Meridian Star 1924-1956), 日星(Solar Star 1926-1958), 晚星(Night Star 1926-1958), 北星(二代Northern Star 1928-1959), 電星(Electric Star 1933-1968, 1948年改柴油引擎).

東星(Oriental Star 1955-1973), 天星(Celestial Star 1956- ), 耀星(Radiant Star 1956-1971), 午星(二代Meridian Star 1958-), 日星(Solar Star 1958- ), 北星(三代Northern Star 1959), 夜星(二代Night Star 1963-), 輝星(Shining Star 1964- ), 晨星(Day Star 1964-), 熒星(Twinking Star 1964-), 曉星(四代Morning Star 1965- ), 銀星(Silver Star 1965-).

Interestingly 曉星 (xiaoxing / morning star) is the most frequently used (it has been used on four boats). Perhaps because it is the most beautiful? But do note that in HK Cantonese and English are spoken and in Cantonese, its pronunciation is very different from that of little star.

BTW, I think 銀河 （Yinhe, the milky way) is a special and superb name.

沈銀河 is/was a famous Korean actress, but she is married and has retired.

[jbradfor]

My sons name is "Jiun Jang" which means "Tall" and "widely to praise" ( so im told ).

I don't know if you care (some people do care, some people don't), but AFAIK "Jiun" is not a valid romanization in either pinyin or wade-giles. I'm not sure how much you're attached to that spelling, but if you don't mind changing the spelling, and if you want to be "correct", we can help you find the correct spelling. [FWIW, "Jang" is valid wade-giles, 'Rang' in pinyin, but I can't think any character meaning praise with that pronunciation. 榮 is the closest I can think of, but the meaning is closer to "glory", and the romanization is different.]

[Benoah]

well, another thing i thought of...she was born in the longest night of the whole year, i dont even know the english word for it. Anyone knows the english + chinese way to say it?

[renzhe]

The English name is winter solstice, but this typically refers to the shortest day (and the longest night) of the year in general, not the night specifically.

[skylee]

The Chinese name is 冬至 (dongzhi).

PS - information on the internet says that 喜冬 (xidong) is another name for winter solstice. This could be a good name for the girl.

[Benoah]

Thank you all for the tips. We went with Xiao-Xing

Bless you all!