Chinese to English translation and transliteration of Chinese names
It goes without saying that the
first step, if possible, is to ask the client or the person
whose name is being translated directly. Failing that,
regardless of what region of the world they come from, check Here are a set of general guidelines for translating or
transliterating a Chinese person’s name into English:
Chinese to English translation of the names of persons from
Mainland China are the easiest as they follow a very standard
set of rules. They rarely use an English first name in printed
form, even if they adopt one for informal use. The
transliteration follows the pinyin system which can be looked up
in any good Chinese-English dictionary from mainland China. The
names never use tone marks. When the person has more than one
first name, the two
In Taiwan, the vast majority of Taiwanese today
romanize their names in Mandarin pronunciation using Wades-Giles
or a similar system, which can be easily distinguished
from the Hanyu Pinyin
used for romanization in
Double- There are a handful of common and a long list
of less frequently encountered double-character
or double-syllable Chinese surnames. Care must
be taken not to think of the second character as
being part of the first name rather than part of
a double character Chinese surname, especially
when the individual has a single character first
name. Using the transliteration standard common in
mainland China, the most common six are: Zhuge (诸葛),
Ouyang (欧阳), Shangguan (上官), Situ (司徒 in
Cantonese: Szeto), Sima (司马) and Sikong (司空). Less frequently found however, still among
the top 500 Chinese surnames are: Mosi (万俟), Xiahou (夏侯), Wenren (聞人), Dongfang
(東方), Helian (赫連), Huangfu (皇甫), Weichi (尉遲),
Gongyang (公羊), Dantai (澹台), Gongye (公冶),
Zongzheng (宗政), Puyang (濮陽), Chunyu (淳于), Danyu
(單于), Taishu (太叔), Shentu (申屠), Gongsun (公孫),
Zhongsun (仲孫), Xuanyuan (軒轅), Linghu (令狐),
Zhongli (鐘-離), Yuwen (宇文), Zhangsun (長孫), Murong
(暮容), Xianyu (鮮于), Luqiu (閭丘), Jiguan (亓官),
Sikou (司寇), Xiangli (相里), Dugu (獨孤), Zhuansun
(顓孫), Duanmu (端木), Wuma (巫馬), Gongxi (公西),
Qidiao (漆雕), Yuezheng (樂正), Rangsi (壤駟),
Gongliang (公良), Tuoba (拓跋), Jiagu (夾谷), Zaifu
(宰父), Guliang (谷梁), Duangan (段干), Baili (百里),
Dongguo (東郭), Nanmen (南門), Huyan (呼延), Ziche
(子車), Yangshe (羊舌), Weisheng (微生), Liangqiu
(梁丘), Zuoqiu (左丘), Dongmen (東門), Ximen (西門),
Zhongchang (仲長), Gaotang (高堂), Diwu (第五),
Nangong (南宮).
However, there are Taiwanese individuals who use
English first names, and when this is done, it is necessary to
use their English first name in translation, rather than a
transliteration of the Chinese. In such a case, the first name
comes first, as in English. 謝長廷
Frank Hsieh When translating a very formal,
government or academic document, and one encounters the name of
an individual with an English first name, then it is more usual
to include both the English and Chinese first names: 謝長廷
Frank Hsieh Chang-ting For any well-known individual, a
search online will answer the question. For lesser
known people, if you don’t have access to their business card,
you would do best to call their office and ask in order to avoid
a mistake. When no other avenue is available, as a last resort
you can use the Wades-Giles transliteration of the name, without
use of the apostrophes or diacritical marks.
Never use the mainland China pinyin transliteration for a
Taiwanese person’s name. This would be considered a major
translation error.
Most, but not all, Hong Kong individuals have an English first
name, and, with the exception of government documents, the
English name is the one to use in translation. Similar to the
rules for Taiwan above, try to determine the English name via an
online search, by asking the translation client or by calling
the person’s office. If the person does not go by an English
first name, or no determination can be made, translation follows
the English rules for transliteration of Cantonese in Hong Kong.
Exceptions abound, so, attempt to determine the person’s
accepted method for transliteration before following the
standard. When using the Cantonese transliteration of the
Chinese name, last name comes first, following by the first
name. The two first names are separated by a space, are usually
not hyphenated, with the second half of the first name
capitalized. To see the level of variation, note the accepted
transliteration of these famous Hongkongers who chose not to
have an English first name: All three names capitalized
– no hyphens: 歐偉倫 Au Wai Lun (born 1971) Here is an example of an exception. The transliteration of
Hong Kong industrialist, tycoon, billionaire and philanthropist,
Chen Din Hwa (陳廷驊) is a hybrid of mainland China Mandarin
pronunciation and Hong Kong Cantonese transliteration as he was
born in Ningbo. 陳 is Chan in Cantonese. Other exceptions to the
rule are: 錢似鶯 Chin Chi Yung In Macau, Chinese names are usually transliterated based on
Portuguese orthography. Chinese in southeast Asia, Hong Kong,
Chinese from diaspora communities in Malaysia and Singapore
can also be identified by the inclusion of spaces in their first
names such as Tan Cheng Lock, however, as in Hong Kong,
exceptions abound, for example, in Malaysia 楊永強
Yeoh Eng-kiong.
The number of the possible
variations in the transliteration of a surname can be evidenced
in this list of famous people for the pinyin-spelled Ouyang
surname:
·
Ouyang
Ziyuan (欧阳自远),
chief scientist of China's lunar
exploration program and an academician at the Chinese
Academy of Sciences
|
Chinese Translation Guide
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Offices in Nanjing, China and New York, N.Y., U.S.A.
Offices in Nanjing, China and New York, N.Y., U.S.A.