Míngzis That Sounds Like Western Names

[Angelina]

What about 霓 and Nina @yst? I love that name

You now reminded me of a linguist from Taiwan called Niina. Is that a normal name in Taiwan?

In China, there is a famous pregnancy test called 大卫/David. Interesting.

[imron]

which only contains names made from Chinese characters which I feel have a good, auspicious meaning

It's not necessarily about having a good, auspicious meaning, it's about the story and reasons why your parents chose the characters they did and the meaning/hopes/dreams behind it.

 

Whatever name you choose from the above list the meaning of the characters is secondary to the main reason, which is wanting something that sounded like a German name too.

 

I agree that asking the Chinese grandparents is also a good idea, and that what you choose for the child's Chinese surname is also important.

[Lu]

The term is 菜市場名 (or 菜市仔名 in Taiwanese), meaning "food market name." It comes from describing a name so common that if one yells it at the food market, many people will turn their heads.

 

I think sounding 土 and having a 菜市仔名 are two different things. 土 has the connotation of being from the countryside, or lacking in sophistication. A 菜市仔名 may be common, they still follow the meanings associated with the words. That's why the names are popular: they have good meanings behind them and they also sound good.

Yes, that was the term, thank you! I agree that 土 is not the same as 菜市仔名.

 

Ai Weiwei's father reportedly found little Weiwei's name by randomly opening a dictionary, and then picking something on the next page when he didn't like the character he found. I know at least one other person with a name chosen that way (grandma picking it from the Cihai). I think as long as the parents pick the name with the intention of it being a good name for their kid, and the name itself doesn't have any bad connotations, then they have lived up to their responsibility. How is picking a name that also works in German that different from picking a name that has to have so-and-so many strokes and contain this or that element?

[Holly93]

My friends a  Taiwan/English just recently had a child and they chose two separate names because the child will have dual citizenship in both U.S.A. and Taiwan. So he has an English and Chinese name. His father's side call him by Chinese name when when he visits Taiwan and he called by his English name in the states. He two now. I don't think they have ever had an issue with him having two names.  The name They put on his birth certificate is the name associated with the country he will grow up in. I do not know if this will help you to make a decision. Good luck. Naming your child is an important and sometimes difficult decision. 

[oceancalligraphy]

 

 

What about 霓 and Nina @yst? I love that name 

You now reminded me of a linguist from Taiwan called Niina. Is that a normal name in Taiwan?

 

I'm not a big fan of 霓 by itself. I think it needs another character to balance the name. 

 

Niina with two i's? Is that a transliteration of the whole name? or is it supposed to be an English name?

Sometimes people in Taiwan choose English names almost like how Westerners pick nicknames or pet names, so sometimes the spellings or names themselves may be a little odd in Western terms.

[Angelina]

霓娜呢？

Yes, that was with two ii's.

[oceancalligraphy]

 

霓娜呢？

Yes, that was with two ii's. 

 

I guess 霓娜 works, but I would immediately take it as transliteration to Chinese, rather than a Chinese name. I don't think the 娜 balances the 霓.

 

I have no idea about the two i's. Maybe she liked the name Nina and just wanted to be unique. 

[vellocet]

If you give your kid a name with a nonstandard spelling, the kid will have a lifetime of problems.  "But I want a unique name!"  Yeah, and the kid will have to spell it out, every single time, and become accustomed to it being spelled wrong on school registrations, airline tickets, and so on.  Fun will ensue when government officials notice that the spelling on the passport is not the same as the paperwork and refuse to complete whatever transaction it might be.  Please don't do this to your children.

[Meng Lelan]

大卫 / David

 

 

 

I used to go to a Chinese church and seemed like every boy there was named DaWei. 

[Lu]

If you give your kid a name with a nonstandard spelling, the kid will have a lifetime of problems.

Speaking as someone with a name that is spelled not as you expect: yes don't do this if you can avoid it. Your kid will be spelling the name forever and it just gets old.

 

However, I suspect that Niina Zhang picked that spelling herself, so I don't think we need to feel sorry for her. It works well if you want to be stand out a bit. When I wanted to check what her surname was just now I only had to search 'Niina linguist' and there she was.

[Demonic_Duck]

Good point. You wanna be instantly googlable, just pick a unique name!

 

On the other hand, many people don't want to be instantly googlable...

[Kenny同志]

If I were you, I’d go for Janine 佳宁 or Julian 祐廉 because 1）佳宁 and 祐廉 are refined authentic Chinese names which have very positive connotations；2）佳宁 and Janine are homophones, so are Julian and 祐廉.

 

PS: Also note that these two Chinese names can only serve as given names. They need a one or two-character family name to work with officially.

[skylee]

I agree with #32, which suggests the same names as in my #2.

[Junzi]

Thank you all for the further input! I came on here to ensure we eliminate any “throwaway names” from my list, so criticism is also most welcome. My goal is to find really authentic and beautiful Chinese names that also smoothly transliterate into German and/or English. Of course that is not the only criteria my wife and I are considering. Overall our criteria for the name of our child would be to choose a global, meaningful, nice sounding and classic name:

 

• Global

Our child will be a Global Citizen born into a culture clash. It will have a mixed identity and heritage and so should its name. To travel well in our globalized world, the name should preferably be easily translatable across the globe.

• Meaningful

It should be a meaningful name with a positive connotation. We wish our child a wonderful life ahead, blessed with kind love, health and fortune. Giving a name with a beautiful meaning will give the child a lucky charm on the way.

• Nice Sound

A nice sounding name simply makes you more sympathetic. Of course this is quite subjective, but I guess there are a few rules of thumb, like choosing something which is a bit melodic and easy to pronounce. When it’s easy to pronounce and spell, that will of course also make their lives easier, as some of you have pointed out.

• Classic

Fashions change with every season, so we want to pick something rather classic and timeless, no “trendy millennial hipster names”, which are bound to sound out-of-date in a few years already and subsequently come with an age bias at every age.

 

 

So “it sounds like German” would really not be our “singular reason” or “story behind the name”, but rather one of the criteria for our selection. That said, I find a thoughtful selection a much nicer “name story” than e.g. “some uncle suggested it” or “we found it after we flipped open a random page in a dictionary” like in Lu's example of Ai Waiwai. I’m very glad that Janine and Julian seem to be good choices. They really check all our boxes and will now definitely be in our close selection.

 

 丽丽 (Lily) is also wonderful! I can’t tell how we overlooked that name before, it’s truly lovely! I guess 丽莉 would work as well, right? That would then translate into “beautiful jasmine” – and jasmine is my wife’s favourite flower. Thank you for the suggestion DernierVirage.

 

How about 路义 (Louis)? We really like that name for a boy, and the meaning “path of righteousness” also seems to be very suitable. As my wife is Buddhist, chances are high that the child will walk on the Noble Eightfold Path as well. We are not overly religious, but we value good morals very high and “righteousness” is certainly a core value we treasure. 

[Angelina]

Why don't you just find a name you like and then see if it will look strange in other parts of the world? If it does not sound that bad when you say it in Mandarin, go for it! Maybe it will be better to have a separate Chinese name.

I was named after my grandma (Angelina) and it turned out to be okay when you travel around the world. My brother's name is Stefan. And no, nobody thought whether or not it will sound German, my grandpa's name was Stefan and it was enough. If it sounds normal in other cultures, that's plus, but it should not be your starting point.

If don't start with meaning first you will end up like those people who go for trendy millennial hipster names.

[Angelina]

路义 looks a bit weird for a Chinese name.

[Hofmann]

So how many languages are you aiming to make this name compatible with? Globalism doesn't mean assimilation. Globalism is embracing pluralism and diversity. In this light you would do better to choose a good name for each language you encounter as you need to.

I'll be blunt: 麗麗 looks like a pet name. 麗莉 is gaudy in that 莉 are already pretty. It couldn't possibly be an ugly jasmine, could it? Blue sky, white cloud, tall mountain. 路義 is crude. Metaphorical paths are usually 道. 路 are usually literal roads, formerly between cities, so unpaved, where horses defecate. 義 is not bad, but too common for my taste.

[Angelina]

Yup, the 路 were like an unpaved Route 66 originally.

[skylee]

Those listed in #34 (ie 麗麗 麗莉 路義）are not good choices.

麗麗 and 麗莉 are real Chinese female names. But who would want names like them?

[Demonic_Duck]

It would also help to know your wife's maiden name, which I assume you will use for the Chinese surname.