A Cross—cultural Comparative Study of English and Chinese Names

1.Introduction

Names are not only symbols to distinguish each other but also mirrors of different cultures. In this sense， an investigation into the similarities and differences of the Chinese and English names as well as naming practices will surely help maintain the identity of the Chinese culture against the tendency of economic globalization and of cultural homogenization.

2.Literature Review

Since 1990s， more and more scholars began to study the connections between personal names and culture. The Mirror Image of Culture—Personal Names， published in 1990 by Wang Jianhua， is a book about personal names and their culture connotations from the perspective of cultural linguistics. Another book called Personal Names and Chinese Culture by He Xiaoming associated many aspects of culture with personal names including politics， religion， ethic， custom and so forth. Tian Huigang provided a chapter in his book—Chinese and Western Interpersonal Appellation Systems to give a detailed comparison of family names and given names in Chinese and Western culture. Du Xuezeng in his book—The Comparison of Culture and custom in China and English-Speaking Countries devoted one chapter to name customs in China and in western countries. Unfortunately， although pathetically sincere， they are far from in-depth investigations in this field.

3.A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Names

Name is not only the representation of individual symbols， but is a kind of cultural carrier.

3.1 The Differences Reflected through Names

Both Chinese and English names composed of surnames and given names. But the order is opposite in Chinese and English name systems. English given name comes first and surname is at the end. In China， surname is placed ahead of given name. Naming sequence in Chinese culture embodies the collective value， while westerners emphasize individualism， advocate individual's independent personality and self-value.

In terms of historical origin， English surnames’ history is much shorter than Chinese ones. Surnames are not elective for a person’s surname is inherent， serving as a symbol representing a clan or a big family; while given name， being much more flexible， can be chosen at random.

Since Western people believe in Christianity， the influences of culture of the ancient Greek and Rome cannot be ignored as so many names are from Christianity or God in the fairy tales and legends. However， the practice of naming in China is deeply affected by traditional Confucianism.

Westerners focus on personality， promoting personal heroism and usually choose Leo， Arthur， Gary as their names while Chinese advocate collectivism and are fond of mythical creatures such as dragon， phoenix and so on.

The westerners are willing to accept the description of their features of appearance or personality as their names no matter good or bad. Unlike the case in China that Chinese specially choose characters with refined meaning as their names.

English people often name after his father or grandfather， so examples of the same name sometimes appear between the two generations. However， naming after the grandparents in China is regarded as a kind of taboo. A son in China never uses any character of his father’s given name in his own name.

3.2 The similarities reflected names

In both China and English-speaking countries there is a custom that descendants took the same official position or occupation passed down by their fathers.

Place names have been a common source for surnames in all countries because it is a most natural and easy way for a person to identify himself to a stranger.

With the improvement of society， people increasingly used their occupational names as their surnames， providing us with a wide-ranging picture of the social situation and economic condition at that time.

Chinese names and English names both set apart from male names and female names. Male names often reflect the powerful masculine; female names usually contain the meaning of beautiful scenery or landscape.

4. Conclusion

From the perspectives of the basic structures， the history backgrounds， the origins， the features and the cultural implication reflected through names， this paper makes a socio-cultural analysis of Chinese and English surnames and given names to help people from different cultural backgrounds improve their understanding of each other and enhance their awareness of respect to the reciprocal culture.

References：

[1]Chen Li， Chen Jianhua. A Comparative Dictionary of English and Chinese Cultures[M].Chang Sha： Hu Nan Education Press， 2000.

[2]Hu Wenzhong. A Dictionary of British and American Culture[M]. Beijing： Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press，1991.

[3]Li Shenlian. A Dictionary of English Surnames and Christian Names[M]. Beijing： Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press， 2001.

[4]Tao Liming， A panorama of China [M]. Shanghai： Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press，2011.