3 ms·
On the other hand, reverse roles for a second. Try opening a bank account in a Western country with a real Chinese name and you don't even get to the "fun" part
by zinckiwi 8y ago
On the other hand, reverse roles for a second. Try opening a bank account in a Western country with a real Chinese name and you don't even get to the "fun" part. We have to put up with some language gotchas; they're forced to invent an entire new name.
- chomp 8y ago>they're forced to invent an entire new name. If you're Chinese and find yourself in the West, you spell your name in Pinyin. You don't have to invent a new name unless you want to (I know a Chinese person who did this, but it was for social reasons, not necessity.) On the flip side, you definitely should invent a new name if you're from the West and want to live in China for a extended period of time, or you'll find that life can be very painful. Sometimes you can even find a direct translation, e.g. David => 大卫 (Da Wei).
- seanmcdirmid 8y agoChinese names aren’t that useful in China for official business. They are useful for non-English speaking in-laws. I rarely used mine while living in Beijing for 10 years.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- seanmcdirmid 8y agoHuh? Pinyin romanization in mainland China is extremely standardized and fixed by your passport anyways? How can these screw it up? Taiwan and the other Chinese speaking places is where all the weird romanizations come from.