It is the most important day of our lives and we're too young to even know it. I am talking about the day our parents name us. On this day we could spend the rest of our lives being called Bill Ding (building) or Don Key (donkey) or Chris P. Bacon (crispy bacon). We put a tremendous amount of trust in our parents' on this day.
But fear not, we get another chance when we study a different language or move to a foreign country.
It is a big moment in the life of a Westerner when he finally receives a Chinese name. It is the day he feels like he truly belongs here in China. When you are a tall, goofy-looking laowai it is difficult to blend in on the streets of Beijing.
But at least when you have a Chinese name you feel like you have an identity. Like a little part of you has become Chinese.
I used to teach at the University of Science and Technology, Beijing. While I was there my boss gave me the name Fu Lin. Fu Lin, which is close to my surname of Coughlin, was also the name of a Chinese emperor who ruled in the 1600s. I thought this was a great name.
Think about it. One day I am Adam, a simple teacher, but the next day I am sharing a name with a Chinese emperor. I felt like I could conquer the world or at least handle a class full of well-behaved Chinese students!
My friend Frank didn't have such good luck. His middle name is Newman and so his Chinese name is Niu Ben, which, when you write it in Chinese, looks like four cows. Frank says people always laugh at him when he tells them his Chinese name.
People always smile when they hear the name of my friend Eric. Eric moved from NYC to Beijing to work at the Chinese website, Ifindu.com. His co-workers were so excited that he came and thought he would help their company so much that they had an intense discussion about what an appropriate name for him would be.
Eric said they engaged in a heated debate for a long time, however it was in Chinese so he didn't understand. Eventually they narrowed it down to three choices: Beauty in the Autumn, Man of the People and The Future. They decided on Wei Lai or The Future. Needless to say Eric thinks it is the coolest name in the world.
Max Quillen knows his Chinese name is common to everyone but him. He has lived in China for almost four years but was given his name, Lin Qiang, when he first arrived.
"I think it's a bit like John Smith (a generic Western name) in terms of commonness, but with some heroic soldier-type connotations, which makes me feel tough. So I like it."
For all of you studying a foreign language think long and hard about the name you want to have. William Shakespeare once wrote, "What is in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet". This might be true for flowers but names help define who we are. And you'd better listen to me. Remember I am an emperor!
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