My English name is a Romanized version of my Chinese name, which is the common format for the majority of Chinese in my home country. This is one of those everyday existences which no one questioned, so I naturally did not think much about it for the first 18 years of my life. When I attended college in the States, while many of my classmates found my name a little challenging to remember and/ or pronounce, no one has ever suggested I adopt a common English name such as Melissa or Emily.
Hence I was both amused and annoyed by some fellow Chinese in Hong Kong who asked if I had an “English” name when I introduced myself with my Romanized Chinese name. It was only then I noticed that 98% of the people in Hong Kong have an “English name” – if their parents did not give them one on their birth certificate, they’ll adopt one when they are in school or start working. In addition to the more traditional English names such as Jane, Susan and Michael, the most common ones I’ve seen among girls are fruits – Cherry, Mango, Apple, Orange
Below are a few more “great” names that I’ve seen. You should seriously consider them for your kids:
- Bird – Great start but you need to be more specific, e.g. Parrot, Flamingo, Crow, Pelican, Ostrich
- But – Why not And?
- Ice – Your 2nd kid can be named Fire
- Drunk – The other kids can be Tipsy, Shitfaced and Hangover. Easy.
- Calculus – Combined with Algebra, Geometry and Logic, you are in good shape to do well in Pure Mathematics!
- Xenon – Can’t beat my sis’ suggestion of Francium and Selenium, which can be Frank and Selena in short (check the periodic table for more options!)
- Kinki – I’m sure he/ she will be best pals with Sadist and Masochist
Seriously, I do not understand why these people with such unique and beautiful names in their native language would want to be identified as Tom, Dick or Harry. Either that or they got too creative. Do you really want Li Na to be known as Banana Li, or Yao Ming to be known as Mackerel Yao??
Last but not least, because I work for a well-known global luxury brand, a few people asked “Can I call you the _______ (Dior, Chanel, Cartier, Hermes…) girl?”
My response (and am very tempted to show them the middle finger too):
