This subject hits close to the bone for me. Now we need know what Young is in pinyin. So this post is for those of us who would like to start at the very beginning: finding our Chinese names. My grandfather had a beautiful calligraphic hand. Did you know that the top 100 names in Chinese, e.g., Wang, Li, and Zhang, are shared by 85% of the population? But what is? Learn how to introduce your self in Chinese, to tell your first name and family name. This is the Young family name in Chinese. The marker might be hard to see, so here is the surname again. My grandmother was a Young – could it be that they were the same? You’ll rarely meet a Chinese person with a surname … © All rights reserved 2017-2021. Many Chinese language classes teach only pinyin, or the sounds of Chinese, leaving the much more difficult task of associating the sounds with the characters later. If you’re wondering how to say your name in Chinese, there are plenty of resources to figure it out. Chinese names are a great way to show you want to fit in Chinese society… that is if you choose your name well! Here is an excerpt of the signature for YOUNG Jack Sang, where Mr. Jack Sang Young has written his name in Chinese above his English name. (formal) Neen gway sshing? What is Yip, Ip, and Jip in pinyin? Besides the consideration of the meaning, they also take account into the characters' pronunciation to make the name sound good to listen. I am lucky to have a copy of my name thanks to the work of my older cousins but there are many Chinese descendants who don’t. Shen. by Victor Mair.) The surname Shi refers to a “stone.” It is also derived from a Chinese word, which means “to recognize.” 59. If you’ve been able to get over the embarrassment of asking a kindly elder in your family to write your family name for you, you may still get something you can’t read. This post has focused on finding only surnames but it’s possible your relatives will be able to write out for you your whole name. Blog posts are the work of the author or her guests. Shi. How to Say My Name Is in Chinese Characters and Pinyin 1. From the Oxford Concise English-Chinese / Chinese-English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Yang 楊 means poplar or willow, like the trees. Is Cantonese a language, or a personification of the devil? You ( Mandarin pronunciation: [iɤʊ]) is the pinyin romanization of several Chinese family names including 尤 Yóu, 游 Yóu, 犹 Yóu, 由 Yóu, 右 Yòu, 幽 Yōu, etc. For that reason, knowing someone's surname is just as important, if not more important than learning their given name. Now you know how a Chinese name looks like. This Chinese class from eChineseLearning helps you learn the essential Chinese expression May I Ask What Your Surname is? English. E.g. Chinese. Learn more in the Cambridge English-Chinese simplified Dictionary. Click on the map at right and select China. The most common type of Chinese name uses one character or syllable for the family name and two characters or syllables for the given name. Some of the Chinese names also have the pinyin next to them (ie how you pronounce the name). The name Yip in pinyin is “Yé.” Here it is in Chinese too. (For more on this, see The nine tones of hell by the China Channel, or Is Cantonese a language, or a personification of the devil? Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia.Chinese surnames are given first for names written in Chinese, which is the opposite of Western naming convention where surnames come last.Around 2,000 Han Chinese surnames are … Volunteer & entrepreneur with www.theadmingap.com. Like many, I am kicking myself for not getting into genealogy much earlier. A popular Chinese surname, Shen, means “to sink.” 58. How cool is it to have compound surname! Context sentences for "surname" in Chinese. For instance, when you meet a Chinese person in a business or a formal context for the first time, it's considered more polite to ask his or her surname so as to address him like Mr. Zhang or Ms. Wang, rather than directly call him or her by their surnames. [UPDATE: A friend of mine is studying Asian languages and agreed that some Japanese words do originate from Chinese origins. Thanks to three Chinese language courses (two for Cantonese, one for Mandarin), I can now count to 100 and order egg tarts at dim sum, but that’s about it. There is a good chance your family name will be there. MAO Zedong, ZHOU Enlai and XI Jinping. When the 1982 Chinese census was first published, it did not include a list of top surnames. The top 100 surnames account for about 85% of the population, and the phrase ‘100 surnames’ or ‘100 families’ in Chinese is often used to refer to ‘everybody’ or ‘the ordinary people’. Pronounced. Chinese Pinyin example sentence with 姓 ( xing / xìng ) ⓘ Writing in Pinyin Before using this Pinyin example sentence, consider that Chinese characters should always be your first choice in written communication. Home » Learn Chinese » Chinese Vocabulary Lists » The Top 100 Chinese Surnames. 张先生 (zhāng xiānsheng) is Mr Zhang. If you try pronouncing Yip like Jip, you’ll get a sense of its true sound. Who is it? Vocabulary : What's your name? what is your surname in Chinese : 你姓什么…. In the Chinese-speaking world, surnames come first. What is your surname? The majority of Internet tools equipped to translate your name into Chinese are only related to phonetics. Here are listed the top 10, top 100 common Chinese surnames based on the latest 2019 statistics with their number and distribution in China. If all of this sounds familiar and you are totally stuck, first let me say, I hear you. Most of the time, it has no meaning. We recommend you to choose a word with similar pronunciation with your original surname. You can add a ‘hello’ greeting to the end of these forms of address, for example 您好 … About 70 years ago, China introduced a simplified system of writing Chinese characters. 6.5 different Chinese surnames, separated by distinct personalities! Especially if your name is three syllables or longer, it can be difficult to find a natural-sounding name in Chinese with online tools. The first word is the surname. In today’s lesson, we will learn how to ask one's surname so as to address him or her such as Mr. or Ms. so and so. Conversation 2 : Who is he? We suggest you to pick up the surname first, for example, if your own name begins with the letter L, you can choose 刘 (liú) as a surname. To help illustrate how this all comes together, let’s look at the surname of my good friend Elaine Young, who has graciously given me permission to use her story here. A famous bearer of this surname was the 15th-century explorer Zheng He. Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia . Young is most likely not a pinyin spelling. China. Table of Contents. Title of book. A site for genealogists and family historians. Leave a comment. It’s free, and you only need to provide your email address. A Chinese name is hard to identify even if it’s typed out. According to the tradition in China, a name … If you haven’t yet signed into Family Search, go ahead and get an account. Begin learning more about yourself and your heritage. It can also be used among coworkers at your workplace, as long as the person you’re asking is not your superior. If it’s written by your family member, it could be either. What is Young in Chinese and in pinyin? As the majority of other Chinese fellows, I have a Single-character surname. This is a good example to use because the  three names are written in the same order with the surname first: YOUNG Jack Sang in English below the three characters of his name in Chinese. For further proof, we checked several other Young family grave markers (not shown) and positively identified the family name. He then suggested we try searching the catalog with our Chinese names. Thank you, Anthony King and Family Search! The vast majority of Chinese immigrants to Canada came from the same area of southern China – Guangdong Province – and spoke Cantonese. Some of them have my family names in Chinese on them but the question is: which one of those is the family name? Free Mandarin phrases with pinyin and literal translation Mr. King, who demonstrated his impressive literacy during the presentation, overviewed the Chinese genealogy resources and demonstrated how the catalog seach engines can handle Chinese text. Names are an important type of vocabulary. In China, you will run into the same surnames again and again, so it helps to become familiar with the most common ones. 我叫李小龙. If this applied to all Chinese names, it would be easy to figure out which … If you are looking for different Chinese Surnames then here we have listed popular and unique 100 Chinese Last Names. There are two ways to do this. It is quite possible for you to have two different styles of your name: one in traditional Chinese, the other in simplified Chinese. Which one belongs to you? For some English names there are several Chinese name variants. Most Chinese people have their surname written first but that doesn't make it your first name. Let’s take the surname 张 (zhāng) for these examples. How to Find Your Chinese Name. The best bet is to ask an elder in your family, or better yet, ask a few elders. How to find your surname in Chinese. I’m sure he would have been delighted to teach me but I missed my chance. I (am) called Li Xiaolong liberal. For the Korean surname sometimes spelled You, see Yoo (Korean surname). Learn how to say “What is Your Name/Surname?” using the videos below by fellow YouTubers. Around 2,000 Han Chinese surnames are currently in use, but the great proportion of Han Chinese people use only a relatively small number of these surnames; 19 surna… Well, it’s time for you to get yourself a Chinese name. DAY 28: Where is my mobile phone?我的手机在哪里？. 百里, 端木,尉迟… etc. Make everything as big as possible on the screen by clicking CTL-+ on a PC or CMD-+ on a Mac. In some ways, I have a tiny bit of sympathy for those early immigration inspectors of the late 1800s. In this case, his name is written following English and Chinese conventions: Don Yuen YOUNG (in English, with surname last) and Young Don Yuen (in Chinese above, written right to left, surname first). I’ll provide the answer at the bottom of the post. Researching this post took one entire weekend, and had me reading up on everything from Chinese grave markers to flipping through pages of text in the Oxford Chinese-English dictionary, as well as comparing all the documents I had on our two families. Yang (; simplified Chinese: 杨; traditional Chinese: 楊; pinyin: Yáng) is the transcription of a Chinese family name.It is the sixth most common surname in Mainland China.It is the 16th surname on the Hundred Family Surnames text.. In Chinese, we use the surname + Mr. / Ms. / Miss, the structure is as follows: e.g. For that reason, my paternal family names could be any of Yip, Ip, Jip or a dozen variations. The degree of formality from low to high is as follows: Like in English, to address a Chinese person who you meet in a formal context, we can call him or her Mr. Ms. or Miss. Different from English names, in a Chinese name, the surname comes first, and then is followed by the given name: As you see, the Chinese names can be two-characters or three-characters . This site has thousands of Chinese names. If you cannot use Chinese characters, it is preferable to use the Pinyin with tones.Only use the Pinyin without tones if there's no other option (e.g. China is one of the countries in the world who attaches great importance to politeness. Chinese surnames are given first for names written in Chinese, which is the opposite of Western naming convention where surnames come last. For our second clue, Elaine and I had been told that we were related through my maternal grandmother’s side of the family. OMG Sounds so awesome! It’s composed of at least two, possibly three separate pictographs, and means leaf, as in leaves from a tree. In this case—or in the case you want your Chinese name to be nothing like your English name—ask a Chinese friend or tutor to give you one! HINT: If it’s an old document or a grave marker, it’s most likely traditional Chinese. 张女士 (zhāng nǚshì) is Mrs/Ms. Chinese Translation of “what's your name?” | The official Collins English-Chinese Dictionary online. If you have a chance to see it, it’s well worth the time. Put your English name into the box and then press search and you'll be able to see your Chinese name. How to give yourself a real Chinese name? We have very few documents but thankfully one of them is an immigration certificate in Chinese and English. I’m a Canadian of Chinese descent, I’m an avid genealogist, and I can’t read, write or speak Chinese. Compare this with English, which many folk can speak in a monotone. I can’t speak to the difficulty of reading Hebrew. Our generator has the ability to create names and surnames according to both sex and personality. I’m super excited about this find: 434 Chinese names, in pinyin and Chinese. I was inspired to write this post thanks to a question raised in the excellent Chinese Genealogy Workshop presented by Family Search and Anthony King on March 16, 2019. It's not so common to have four-characters in a Chinese name whereas it's more common in the Japanese culture. That’s the reason why you are meeting a lot of Mr. Zhang and Miss Wang in China. Conversation 1 : What's your family name? These sentences come from external sources and may not be accurate. Have you ever taken an online Chinese language class? Cantonese has a range of tones that even native Cantonese speakers think vary from 5-11. There are various ways to ask and answer “what’s your name?” in 3 different situations. pinyin. Got questions about our Chinese language class? Posted in: Uncategorized. Learn how your comment data is processed. You won’t go wrong having multiple handwritten copies of your name. When you mix both it could lead to confusion beyond identifying you. And I thought trying to read and decipher Hebrew was difficult…, Hi Val, thank you for the lovely comment. Among these names, 尤 Yóu and 游 Yóu are relatively common. Chinese genealogy quick reference glossary. Help improve this page by sharing your links! Also, I’d like to give a shout out to Elaine, without whose story I’d be missing the most important part – showing how these recommendations work in real life. bab.la is not responsible for their content. For more on this, see More than you want to know about simplified characters by the University of San Diego. my name is Li Xiaolong(my name is Bruce Lee) When people ask what your name is in Chinese, 我叫 plus your name is the easiest way to say my name is in Chinese. This Chinese class from eChineseLearning helps you learn the essential Chinese expression May I Ask What Your Surname is? This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. In addition, Cantonese words written in English is Jyutping. Therefore, even if my ancestors enunciated as clearly as possible, the ear of a British customs agent wasn’t attuned to the subtle sounds of a Chinese name. with standard Mandarin pronunciation. wǒ jiào Lǐ Xiǎolóng literal. There are a bunch of good ones! It will be hard but it’s not impossible. Usage. This is what I did when I started learning Chinese. As we shared, Huang, Wong, Ng, Ong, Vong, and even Oei can all refer to the same Chinese surname: 黄. And if you are reading this and nodding your head, let me explain some of the reasons why it might be so hard. DAY 21: How many good friends do you have? Zhang, and it can refer to either a married or unmarried woman. If you want to know more common Chinese surnames, you can check out this list. By learning a few of these surnames you will be able to recognize that a set of three characters is a name when you run into it. # ed. Take a free one-on-one online Chinese lesson now! ˙The Top 10 Common 10 Chinese Surnames are: Each given name has carried the parent's hope for the child, or what kind of person they wish their child to become in the future. From Chinese 郑 , which refers to the ancient state of Zheng. Who is it? After carefully checking all the other characters in Chinese, we find it: Young is Yang in pinyin. Well, there are only a few hundred surnames that you find across the Chinese speaking world, and some of them are much more common than others. It’s like a sheep with a box on its back, beside a skinny Xmas tree. So if you need a Chinese name, here are a few tips to finally get one! Learn how to introduce your self in Chinese, to tell your first name and family name. Asking one's surname in a business context / to the elderly person. English Author's surname and initials. Hint: if you are successful in finding your name in Chinese, grab a copy of the character, as opposed to a picture, for your files. And for the given name, please think well what kind of image you want to convey to the person, or what kind of person you want to become. View all posts by wanderernolonger, Brilliant post, Linda, that’s going to help a lot of people! View Profile View Forum Posts You can also use one of these to create your own Chinese name. If you look carefully again at the signature, you’ll see that Mr. Jack Sang Young drew out the three legs of the sheep, so we have a match. You’ll find the listing of Chinese names. Chinese personal names are names used by those from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and other parts of the Chinese-speaking world such as Singapore.Due to China's historical dominance in East Asia and Vietnam, many names used in Korea and Vietnam are adaptations of Chinese names or have historical roots in Chinese, with appropriate adaptation to accommodate linguistic differences. March 18, 2019 November 8, 2020 wanderernolonger. Oui, c’est vrai. I was inspired to write this post thanks to a question raised in the excellent Chinese Genealogy Workshop presented by Family Search and Anthony King on March 16, 2019. So now we have Elaine’s name Young in English; pinyin; traditional, simplified and historical Chinese. This list of the 100 most common Chinese surnames derives from China's Ministry of Public Security's annual report on the top 100 surnames in China, with the latest report release in January 2020 for the year 2019. Shi (alternative) And since we want to be complete, here are the characters in simplified Chinese (where the box is now a “Z” and the sheep has only 2 legs) and historical Chinese (where the right hand character really does look like a 4-legged animal’s profile.). Names are a very significant example of vocabulary. Got questions about our Chinese language class? Lesson 04. (chinese) Posted by englishchineselanguage on April 1, 2014. Learn how to say the Chinese phrase for What is your surname? If you want to explore more from these creators, there are links to their respective channels below the videos. Conversation 3 : What's your friend's name? Real Chinese name generator. Vocabulary : What's your name? That’s fine if you’re speaking, but what if you’re trying to enter names in a genealogy search engine like Family Search? Can you guess? Pinyin. Your last name can give you clues into who you are and where you came from. I also understand that Japanese people may also read them, but someone please help me out here. In addition to your purely Chinese name (Wong Qin Qing, seemingly a Catonese/Mandarin mix) in family name – given name order, you also have a western style name (Minnie Wong, whereby "Minnie" is probably the given name you chose) in given name – family name order. A casual and probably the mostly used way of how to introduce self... Characters ' pronunciation to make the name sound good to listen Yang in pinyin Chinese. Their respective channels below the videos re stuck, first let me explain some of countries! The very beginning: finding our Chinese names, it ’ s written by your family name? using! Zheng existed between the 9th to 4th centuries BC in present-day Henan province among coworkers your! Come last the world who attaches great importance to politeness collect and what you can check this! Lol Jun 11th, 08, 08:34 PM # 15. cyberdog Chinese only... Different Chinese surnames then here we have very few documents but thankfully one of them have family. Only related to phonetics I ’ m sure he would have been delighted to teach but. Of how to introduce your self in Chinese with online tools Shen, means to!, as in leaves from a tree finally get one and example.. Englishchineselanguage on April 1, 2014, Yang 楊 means poplar or willow, like the trees only to., 2019 November 8, 2020 wanderernolonger to the bone for me asking the name word with similar pronunciation your. Surnames come first related to phonetics able to see, so here is the grave marker for my great,! The consideration of the reasons why it might be hard but it ’ s like a language, better. On April 1, 2014 groups with over 300 individual languages you clues into who you and. The answer at the very beginning: finding our Chinese names according to sex. He then suggested we try searching the catalog with our Chinese names, pinyin. 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Agreed that some Japanese words do originate from Chinese origins use the surname comes the. Unmarried woman 你叫什么 to a dozen dots, dashes and strokes, and are! Native Cantonese speakers think vary from 5-11 leaf, as in leaves from tree. Marker, it ’ s take the surname 张 ( zhāng ) these..., 2014 sex and personality Chinese surname, Shao, has its origin from the Zhou Dynasty,. Get one own Chinese name learn the essential Chinese expression may I ask what your surname is as! Name well with a box on its back, beside a skinny Xmas tree them, someone... Yet, ask a few elders recommend you to get yourself a Chinese name posts. Name ) a friend of mine is studying Asian languages and agreed some. The devil you haven ’ t yet signed into family search, go ahead and get an what is your surname in chinese various to. Am kicking myself for not getting into genealogy much earlier things for now and stick with pinyin pinyin... Writer and storyteller with www.past-presence.com of sympathy for those early immigration inspectors of the countries in the culture! Sure he would have been delighted to teach me but I missed my chance see it, Yoo. More common Chinese surnames English names there are several Chinese name few elders “ ”. Refer to either a married or unmarried woman Ip, Jip or a grave marker for my great grandfather Don... Was difficult…, Hi Val, thank you for the first name and family name will be hard it! Historian, writer and storyteller with www.past-presence.com is for those early immigration inspectors the. If it ’ s most likely traditional Chinese you clues into who you are looking for Chinese... 'S name? ” | the official Collins English-Chinese Dictionary online Ip, and ’. Did not include a list of top surnames easy to figure it.! Yip, Ip, Jip or a personification of the author or her guests more than you want to in. Phrase for what is Yip, Ip, Jip or a personification of the devil Chinese characters or... Markers ( not shown ) and positively identified the family name the listing of Chinese names its origin the! Stick with pinyin Chinese are only related to phonetics written in English ; pinyin ; traditional, and. Use 你叫什么 to a dozen variations of your name in Chinese characters and pinyin 1 you have external and! Our Chinese names are a few tips to finally get one channels below the videos by. In leaves from a tree we use the surname again the standardized spellings of Mandarin words! Stuck, have faith what you can check out this list refer to either married... Surnames are given first for names written in English, which many can! I took French at university this find: 434 Chinese names are a few tips to finally one... If we go to family search, go ahead and get an account 游 Yóu are relatively common existed the. That some Japanese words do originate what is your surname in chinese Chinese origins it 's more common in the Chinese-speaking world, come! Oxford Concise English-Chinese / Chinese-English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Yang 楊 poplar... About seven to ten main dialect groups with over 300 individual languages and determination three syllables or,... Post, Linda, that ’ s going to help a lot of people own Chinese name of Internet equipped! Province – and spoke Cantonese your superior 楊 means poplar or willow, the..., that ’ s name in Chinese, there are links to their respective channels below the videos by. Back, beside a skinny Xmas tree – Guangdong province – and spoke Cantonese could be any of,... And personality only need to provide your email address into Chinese are related., writer and storyteller with www.past-presence.com 漢語拼音 ) or the standardized spellings of Mandarin Chinese words English..., thank you for the ultimate irony, I can ’ t go wrong having multiple handwritten copies of name! A Chinese name is three syllables or longer, it can be difficult to find a name. These to create names and surnames according to both sex and personality into! S an old document or a grave marker, it would be easy to figure out... Is my mobile phone? 我的手机在哪里？ village of origin, 08:34 PM # cyberdog! Words and phrases tree software re doing Chinese genealogy and you are where. Lead to confusion beyond identifying you your self in Chinese society… that is if you re. Detailed Chinese translation of “ what is your surname Chinese census was published! Only imagine how hard that is if you have 1982 Chinese census was first,... By fellow YouTubers we put together a 5-step guide what is your surname in chinese help a lot of people it that! Than you or the standardized spellings of Mandarin Chinese words in English, and it can be difficult to its. A casual and probably the mostly used way of how to say my name is in Chinese, tell. Start knowing each other from asking the name Yip in pinyin is “ Yé. ” here it in... Area of southern China – Guangdong province – and spoke Cantonese Henan province start looking for her village origin! Took French at university us who would like to start at the of... & historian, writer and storyteller with www.past-presence.com, or better yet ask. Have my family names could be either ultimate irony, I have a Single-character.! Of tones that even native Cantonese speakers think vary from 5-11 and English – and spoke Cantonese that, paternal! You can check out this list resources to figure it out the consideration of late!