乔语欣 My New Chinese Name!

I have lived in China for almost eight months now! How crazy is that?!?

Yesterday, I asked one of my sophomore classes to find a Chinese name for me. This worked well as a lesson, as they had to explain all of the names to me in English, and debate with each other over which name would be best. I thought I would share which names were suggested, their meaning, and how many votes they received.

I will list them from lowest to highest number of votes:

1.  王沙沙 Wang Sha Sha

This name was chosen by my student Kyle. Wang is the family name, which means king. Many students chose this as my family name for the same reason: Sarah means princess, so I must be the daughter of a king. I suppose I am, two times over. :)

He chose sha sha because it sounds similar to Sarah (I suppose). Sha means young and beautiful. This name only received one vote, because students said that sha also sounds like the word for kill, and they did not want me to be named "king kill kill" Ha

2. 王慧兰 Wang Hui Lan

The family name is also king. Hui is a kind of flower, and when said with lan, it means good quality. The girl who suggested this name said that it would show that I would be a good wife (ha!). This name also received only one vote, because most students said that the name sounded too old-fashioned, like a name their grandmother would have.

3. 韩殊摇 Han Shu Yao

Han is just a good, standard family name. Shu means beautiful. Yao means jade, which stands for luck, purity, and good character. This name only received one vote, though I am not sure why.

4. 上官雪儿 Shang Guan Xue Er

This is a very beautiful name. In ancient China, many people often had two family names, which is why my students chose to combine the Shang and Guan. Xue means snow, and er is a word for white. So, basically they wanted my name to be Snow White. :) This name received only two votes. Most people in the class thought the name was too long an difficult.

5. 田可欣 Tian Ke Xin

Tian is a family name that is pronounced the same as the word for 'sweet'. Ke means 'cute', and xin means 'happy' or 'energetic'. This name only received two votes.

6. 梁笑笑 Liang Xiao Xiao

This name is super cute. It is fun to say. Liang is just a good family name. Xiao Xiao means smile smile. This name received three votes.

7. 王晶Wang Jing

If you remember, Wang means king. Jing means sunshine, clever, and pure. This name received three votes.

8. 余佳 Yu Jia

This name was suggested by one of guys who had seen me at the basketball court previously. Yu is a family name that is pronounced the same as the word for yoga, so he thought it was appropriate since I like sports. Jia means good and beautiful. This name received only three votes, since most of my students said it wasn't appropriate for a girl.

9. 叶子 Ye Zi

This name is so hard to pronounce correctly! My students chose it because they thought it would be easy for me to write. True, but impossible to pronounce. It comes from the word leaf, which implies words, books, and reading.

10. 孔含饴 Kong Han Yi

This name received six votes! They chose Kong as my family name, because it has the same starting sound as Ketchem. Han Yi is very interesting, and I don't quite understand. Somehow, they mean candy that you hold in your mouth for a long time, so the name means that you will have sweetness forever.

And the winner is...

乔语欣 Qiao Yu Xin

This name received 10 votes! There are several reasons it was chosen

1. Qiao is a family name that means beautiful. In ancient china, there were two sisters, 大乔 (da qiao= big qiao) and 小乔 (xiao qiao = little qiao). They were known for being very beautiful, and marrying good men. One married a general, and the other married the emperor. My students said that they think I am beautiful (blushing) and they want me to marry a good man (cute!).

2. Yu means words and literature and books and reading. My students said that they know I love all of those things, so it was appropriate.

3. Xin means happy and energetic.

4. This name, all put together, is very beautiful and sounds lovely when you say it. Anyone who I have told has said, "Oh, that is a very good name."

5. Random bonus! My tutor also has the same xin in her name... We are like sisters!

I am very excited for my new name!!