The invented Chinese names of the 2019 Canadian federal election

Re:The invented Chinese names of the 2019 Canadian federal e... by thaumasiotes on Monday October 21, 2019 @04:50PM (#21317194)

Do you use that name with actual Chinese people, or is it more of a during-Chinese-class thing?

I would feel weird about giving myself a rare and ultra-high-prestige name. But, I have no idea how the Chinese would perceive it.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:The invented Chinese names of the 2019 Canadian federal e... by throwaway_bad on Monday October 21, 2019 @05:38PM (#21317733)

I would probably assume he's just really into Romance of the Three Kingdoms or other historical dramas where the 司馬 surname is common. Or that his real name is Zimmerman.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:The invented Chinese names of the 2019 Canadian federal e... by thaumasiotes on Tuesday October 22, 2019 @02:01AM (#21320750)

> Or that his real name is Zimmerman.

I've read that a number of Chinese with the surname 欧阳 [Ouyang] logically chose the English surname O'Young, confusing a lot of people who were led by the name to expect someone more Irish.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:The invented Chinese names of the 2019 Canadian federal e... by kilo_bravo_3 on Tuesday October 22, 2019 @11:33AM (#21324806)

I was a Chinese Mandarin linguist in the Army for five years, many, many years ago.

My teachers at DLI were really into historical dramas. I'm more into shows with lasers and robots.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:The invented Chinese names of the 2019 Canadian federal e... by morningseagulls on Tuesday October 22, 2019 @12:21AM (#21320355)

>I would feel weird about giving myself a rare and ultra-high-prestige name.

Er... 司馬 isn't that rare, and people would rather advise you to select a rare but prestigious family name, rather than a rare and unknown one.

It's like given names in English: if you pick a rare and unknown name (or even a common one with an unusual spelling), people are just going to go "huh?"

[ Parent | on HN ]