Chinese people/experts please?

Question

I'm penning a novel and two of my female characters are Mandarin Chinese. I have chosen the name Shen Huan for my first character. The second is called Chloe Chun (she has taken on a western name as she lives in the UK, as many Chinese do) but I require a Chinese first name for her.

I need to know, and I'd love some honest answers, if Shen Huan is a good Chinese name, and any suggestions for Chloe's Chinese first name. Thank you!

Yes, I am aware. Shen = surname Huan = forename.

Thanks :)

Answer 1

One thing to remember is that because we name children with any character or any of the two characters put together, we don't have lists of men's names or women's names. You can say that Chinese people actually "invent" names!

When parents name their children, it usually depends on either
1. fortuneteller's suggestion
2. what happened or under what condition they are born
3. what they hope their children to be in the future or
4. what personality they hope their children to have

I think you can add this fact in your novel if you like. It can be a very good factor of a conflict.

Shen Huan is a good name, as Shen (沈) is really a Chinese surname, and there are characters pronounced "huan".

If Chloe is raised in the UK, I think you can give her a name that implies "China" or "Chinese culture", since many overseas Chinese parents don't want their children to "forget their roots", meaning to lose their own culture (the Chinese culture) and forget their true idendity (that they are Chinese). Names like 思中 (Si Zhong) and 思華 (Si Hua) (both of which mean "thinking about China") are of this kind.

Answer 2

well i am student studying chinese at university - and basically you can use almost any name, btw. the first answer you got is right, they have the surname first, then the given name - anyway, the chinese choose names they feel will give their children the best in life so they call them things like "beautiful", and "intelligent", and of course a lot of flower names!!!!
for example "beautiful" is "li", you could make the name much more personal that way!!!

Answer 3

I'm not the Expert, ma'am; but did you know that the Chinese actually have the surname first and the first name last?

Like for example, the actress Zhang Zhiyi? Zhang is actially her surname and Zhiyi is the first name.

In the anglicized Christian names, however, they are in the revese order like, fo example, in Jackie Chan.

Incidentally, you could try Chun Zhiyi.

Answer 4

Chinese female or male first name --- An ( Pronames /a:n/ in international fonatics Symbols).

Answer 5

chloe...how about chen? (as in joan chen, also....my family name *giggle*)

shen huan is ok...
along the same line, you may want to consider:
shen wei (sounds more youthful)
shen shi jia (poetic)
shen xiu qing (common chinese name)...

Answer 6

Chun yan(陈燕）yan is a mocking bird, considered a thing of beauty in China.

Chun hua(陈华）hua represents the people of China and would show Chloe's respect for her heritage.

Chun yao(陈瑶）yao means "of extreme beauty"

Chun su tian(陈塑天）su tian would literally translate to "creator of the sky" and her parents wuold have given her this name if they hoped she would lead a succesive life.

Chun feng(陈枫）feng means "autumn leaves" . It is a pretty name and would be ideal if Chloe was born in Autumn。

Answer 7

how about '原'?i m writing novel oso...我蠻喜歡特別的姓氏。

Answer 8

Ah... I was going to say Zhang but I was beaten to it.

Answer 9

What about Tchi Tchi?