When learning English in school, the Chinese select English names for themselves. This explains why in the credits of Chinese movies, you often see actors with names like Sparky Chu, although it doesn’t adequately explain, to my mind, why 75% of Chinese film stars are named Tony.
I’ve met a lot of Chinese (about half of them, I’d guess) and I can’t help but suspect that someone is having fun with them. Certainly if I were an English teacher, my students would all have names like Wolf Nipple Chip Chao; Elastic Waistband Wu; Farm Fresh Feng. You get the idea.
I haven’t seen anything this extreme, just curiosities like Miller Chen and Constance Cheong. Then there was the woman who helped me at the Dunhuang train station. She introduced herself as Beryl, and before I could say anything, she added, “It’s an unusual name.” Not if you happen to live in the Old Country.
I told a group of Chinese school teachers that my name is Adam. “Adolf?” they all asked in unison. Adolf is one of the names in the back of their English textbook; Adam isn’t. Yes, I was tempted to reply, Adolf was a popular name with Jewish parents in the ’70s. We have a dog named Slobodan.
My American friend who teaches English in China named one of her kids Shakira, mostly as a joke. The girl loves her name and refuses to change it, even though she can’t pronounce it. I wonder if Eminem Yeoh will still be happy with his choice thirty years from now.
At the Holiday Inn, I was assisted by a woman whose name tag read “Battie Jia.” Maybe it was a typo, but the Holiday Inn runs a pretty tight ship. Just as likely, the typo occurred when Battie chose her name, however many years ago.
I look forward someday to meeting her sisters, Dottie, Nutty, and Barking Mad.
