Naming laws in the People's Republic of China
Encyclopedia
Naming laws in the People's Republic of China (excluding Hong Kong
and Macau
, as well as the Republic of China
situated on the islands of Taiwan
, Penghu, Kinmen
and Matsu
) are based on technical capability rather than the appropriateness of words (as opposed to naming laws in Japan, which restrict the Kanji
which can be used based on appropriate taste, as well as readability by all people). Although it is advised for parents to name their children so that others are able to easily read their names, there are no restrictions on the complexity of Chinese characters used, provided that there are no technical issues in doing so (see below). The use of Simplified characters is advised over Traditional Chinese characters; however, this is not strictly enforced.
, although naturally obtained from the paternal side, to be taken from either parent if desired (such as in the case of a dispute between parents) under Article 22 of the "Marriage Law". Thus, the government does not interfere with the will of the person or their parents in the selection of a surname, provided that it is taken from one parent. Citizens also have the right to select their given names and aliases, in which the government has no right to interfere.
There are also no restrictions on previously used names by the government, which fully permits the usage of "well-known" names. It is not illegal to name a child after a famous celebrity, company, or product, as copyright and trademark laws do not apply to personal names. Consequently, this is able to lead to legal issues regarding intellectual property
rights and legal matters, as the person is then known by the name given according to law, which opens the possibility for confusion where a personal name is exactly the same to a company or another person, such as during a court case or the creation of legal documents.
Latin characters, numerals and other non-Chinese symbols are prohibited, as they do not constitute part of a Chinese name under government law. Only Chinese characters are permitted; however, characters which are unable to be input on computers are also disallowed. There are no limits on the number of characters used, as this may vary depending on the name (typical Chinese names on average constitute 2 to 3 characters, with more than 4 being rare; however, non-Han ethnic groups such as Mongols
, Tibetans and Uighurs have many syllables after transliteration into Standard Chinese
).
There are no laws which restrict a person's surname to one character like most Han Chinese
names, since some people of Han Chinese ethnicity have Chinese compound surname
s, and it is very common for foreign residents and ethnic minorities to have long surname transcriptions. However, since the People's Republic of China government does not recognise Mongolian clan names as surnames, persons of Mongol ethnicity usually only have a registered given name and no surname (which are absent on their identification cards, whilst their passports would have "XXX" in the surname field), although some individuals choose to adopt a single-character Han Chinese
surname that resembles an abbreviation of their clan name.
s, yet approximately only 32,232 are supported for computer input, including both Traditional and Simplified characters (see GBK
etc.). As the government database of personal names is maintained digitally on government networks, input of rarer characters becomes virtually impossible, thus creating an irremovable restriction on permitted names. All citizens within the People's Republic of China must have their details registered on the government computer network, while those over the age of 16 must carry an identification card, known in China as a Resident Identity Card at all times. As these processes are all done electronically, having a name which is not supported by electronic input makes government registration and the management of ID cards much more difficult.
who, due to her obscure name, frequently encounters issues regarding name registration in places such as airports and police stations. Ma explained on BTV-7 that her parents were inspired by a trend where given names are made up of a tripled surname, as in 金鑫, 小尛, 魚鱻 and 石磊, and so her grandfather found her name in the Zhonghua Zihai
, the largest Chinese character
dictionary. Pronounced "Cheng", this character can be found in the Kangxi Dictionary
, where it is listed as a variant character
of 骋 (gallop). There is also the comparatively more common stacked character 骉, which doesn't accurately reflect her name either, as it has a different pronunciation. While some vendors may write her name by hand, those that are strictly electronically managed, such as the Public Security Bureau
, are unable to correctly enter her name. Because of this, some computers record her name as 马CHENG or 马马马马. (Compare this practice with the previous technical issues of inputting the Chinese name of the Taiwanese singer David Tao
(陶喆), where before the input of 喆 became supported on computers, many media sources often rendered his name as 陶吉吉, using two 吉 in place of the 喆.)
letter C
, can no longer use his name, as the government does not accept Latin characters in Chinese names. The 22-year old man, having used the given name "C" for his entire life, was refused the right to continue using his name when he was required to update his ID card to a second-generation version. The local Public Security Bureau
informed him that his name violated the rules, and that their computers were not equipped to handle non-standard characters. In Pinyin, his name has a pronunciation similar to cí (雌), rather than xī (西). Zhao could not continue using his name despite a court hearing, as he did not provide the lower court with evidence that the Latin character "C" is part of the national standard for "numbers and symbols" of the People's Republic of China.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
and Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, as well as the Republic of China
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
situated on the islands of Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Penghu, Kinmen
Kinmen
Kinmen , also known as Quemoy , is a small archipelago of several islands administered by the Republic of China : Greater Kinmen, Lesser Kinmen, and some islets. Administratively, it is Kinmen County of Fujian Province, ROC. The county is claimed by the People's Republic of China as part of its...
and Matsu
Matsu Islands
The Matsu Islands are a minor archipelago of 19 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait administered as Lienchiang County , Fujian Province of the Republic of China . Only a small area of what is historically Lienchiang County is under the control of the ROC...
) are based on technical capability rather than the appropriateness of words (as opposed to naming laws in Japan, which restrict the Kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
which can be used based on appropriate taste, as well as readability by all people). Although it is advised for parents to name their children so that others are able to easily read their names, there are no restrictions on the complexity of Chinese characters used, provided that there are no technical issues in doing so (see below). The use of Simplified characters is advised over Traditional Chinese characters; however, this is not strictly enforced.
Details
"General Principles of Civil Law" Article 99 guarantees citizens the right to a name and the choice of naming therein. The right of self-naming permits the surnameChinese surname
Chinese family names have been historically used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups in mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and among overseas Chinese communities. In ancient times two types of surnames, family names and clan names , existed.The colloquial expressions laobaixing...
, although naturally obtained from the paternal side, to be taken from either parent if desired (such as in the case of a dispute between parents) under Article 22 of the "Marriage Law". Thus, the government does not interfere with the will of the person or their parents in the selection of a surname, provided that it is taken from one parent. Citizens also have the right to select their given names and aliases, in which the government has no right to interfere.
There are also no restrictions on previously used names by the government, which fully permits the usage of "well-known" names. It is not illegal to name a child after a famous celebrity, company, or product, as copyright and trademark laws do not apply to personal names. Consequently, this is able to lead to legal issues regarding intellectual property
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
rights and legal matters, as the person is then known by the name given according to law, which opens the possibility for confusion where a personal name is exactly the same to a company or another person, such as during a court case or the creation of legal documents.
Latin characters, numerals and other non-Chinese symbols are prohibited, as they do not constitute part of a Chinese name under government law. Only Chinese characters are permitted; however, characters which are unable to be input on computers are also disallowed. There are no limits on the number of characters used, as this may vary depending on the name (typical Chinese names on average constitute 2 to 3 characters, with more than 4 being rare; however, non-Han ethnic groups such as Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
, Tibetans and Uighurs have many syllables after transliteration into Standard Chinese
Transliteration into Chinese characters
In Chinese, transcription is known as yīnyì or yìmíng . While it is common to see foreign names left in their original forms in a Chinese text, it is also common to transcribe foreign proper nouns into Chinese characters....
).
There are no laws which restrict a person's surname to one character like most Han Chinese
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
names, since some people of Han Chinese ethnicity have Chinese compound surname
Chinese compound surname
A Chinese compound surname is a Chinese surname using more than one character. Many of these surnames derive from noble and official titles, professions, place names and other areas, to serve for a purpose. Some are originally non-Han, while others were created by joining two one-character family...
s, and it is very common for foreign residents and ethnic minorities to have long surname transcriptions. However, since the People's Republic of China government does not recognise Mongolian clan names as surnames, persons of Mongol ethnicity usually only have a registered given name and no surname (which are absent on their identification cards, whilst their passports would have "XXX" in the surname field), although some individuals choose to adopt a single-character Han Chinese
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
surname that resembles an abbreviation of their clan name.
Technical issues
There are over 70,000 known Chinese characterChinese character
Chinese characters are logograms used in the writing of Chinese and Japanese , less frequently Korean , formerly Vietnamese , or other languages...
s, yet approximately only 32,232 are supported for computer input, including both Traditional and Simplified characters (see GBK
GBK
GBK is an extension of the GB2312 character set for simplified Chinese characters, used in the People's Republic of China.GB abbreviates Guojia Biaozhun , which means national standard in Chinese, while K stands for Extension...
etc.). As the government database of personal names is maintained digitally on government networks, input of rarer characters becomes virtually impossible, thus creating an irremovable restriction on permitted names. All citizens within the People's Republic of China must have their details registered on the government computer network, while those over the age of 16 must carry an identification card, known in China as a Resident Identity Card at all times. As these processes are all done electronically, having a name which is not supported by electronic input makes government registration and the management of ID cards much more difficult.
Ma Cheng
Ma Cheng ( (some browsers will be unable to display the second character , which is three 馬 horses placed horizontally)) is a woman from BeijingBeijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
who, due to her obscure name, frequently encounters issues regarding name registration in places such as airports and police stations. Ma explained on BTV-7 that her parents were inspired by a trend where given names are made up of a tripled surname, as in 金鑫, 小尛, 魚鱻 and 石磊, and so her grandfather found her name in the Zhonghua Zihai
Zhonghua Zihai
Zhonghua Zihai is the largest Chinese character dictionary available for print, compiled in 1994 and consisting of 85,568 different characters.- Details :...
, the largest Chinese character
Chinese character
Chinese characters are logograms used in the writing of Chinese and Japanese , less frequently Korean , formerly Vietnamese , or other languages...
dictionary. Pronounced "Cheng", this character can be found in the Kangxi Dictionary
Kangxi dictionary
The Kangxi Dictionary was the standard Chinese dictionary during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Kangxi Emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty ordered its compilation in 1710. The creator innovated greatly by reusing and confirming the new Zihui system of 596 radicals, since then known as 596 Kangxi...
, where it is listed as a variant character
Variant Chinese character
Variant Chinese characters are Chinese characters that are homophones and synonyms. Almost all variants are allographs in most circumstances, such as casual handwriting...
of 骋 (gallop). There is also the comparatively more common stacked character 骉, which doesn't accurately reflect her name either, as it has a different pronunciation. While some vendors may write her name by hand, those that are strictly electronically managed, such as the Public Security Bureau
Public Security Bureau
In the People's Republic of China, a public security bureau refers to the government offices while the smaller offices are called Police posts which are similar in concept to the Japanese Kōban system) present in each province and municipality that handles policing , public security, and...
, are unable to correctly enter her name. Because of this, some computers record her name as 马CHENG or 马马马马. (Compare this practice with the previous technical issues of inputting the Chinese name of the Taiwanese singer David Tao
David Tao
David Tao , born Tao Xuzhong , was born on 11 July 1969. He is a Taiwanese Golden Melody Award-winning singer-songwriter. He is well-known for creating a crossover genre of R&B and hard rock tunes which has now become his signature style and for having popularized R&B in the Mandopop...
(陶喆), where before the input of 喆 became supported on computers, many media sources often rendered his name as 陶吉吉, using two 吉 in place of the 喆.)
Zhao C
Zhao C is a well-known example, having attracted much media attention due to a bizarre case regarding a forced name change by the government due to naming regulations. This case is the first of name rights in the People's Republic of China. Zhao, whose personal name is the Latin alphabetLatin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
letter C
C
Ĉ or ĉ is a consonant in Esperanto orthography, representing the sound .Esperanto orthography uses a diacritic for all four of its postalveolar consonants, as do the Latin-based Slavic alphabets...
, can no longer use his name, as the government does not accept Latin characters in Chinese names. The 22-year old man, having used the given name "C" for his entire life, was refused the right to continue using his name when he was required to update his ID card to a second-generation version. The local Public Security Bureau
Public Security Bureau
In the People's Republic of China, a public security bureau refers to the government offices while the smaller offices are called Police posts which are similar in concept to the Japanese Kōban system) present in each province and municipality that handles policing , public security, and...
informed him that his name violated the rules, and that their computers were not equipped to handle non-standard characters. In Pinyin, his name has a pronunciation similar to cí (雌), rather than xī (西). Zhao could not continue using his name despite a court hearing, as he did not provide the lower court with evidence that the Latin character "C" is part of the national standard for "numbers and symbols" of the People's Republic of China.
Wang "At"
Wang "At" is the name that a Chinese couple attempted to give to their newborn baby. It was subsequently rejected. The couple claimed that the character used in e-mail addresses echoed their love for the child, where in Chinese, "@" is pronounced as "ai-ta", which is similar to 爱他, literally "love him". The incident became widely known, and even covered by Reuters.Other
- Xin Ge (辛哿) – A man with a name meaning "satisfactory" and "fine", who also has difficulty in the registering of his name due to an unsupported character.
See also
- Chinese nameChinese namePersonal names in Chinese culture follow a number of conventions different from those of personal names in Western cultures. Most noticeably, a Chinese name is written with the family name first and the given name next, therefore "John-Paul Smith" as a Chinese name would be "Smith John-Paul"...
- Chinese surnameChinese surnameChinese family names have been historically used by Han Chinese and Sinicized Chinese ethnic groups in mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and among overseas Chinese communities. In ancient times two types of surnames, family names and clan names , existed.The colloquial expressions laobaixing...
- Chinese input methods for computersChinese input methods for computersHundreds of Chinese input methods are available for entry of Chinese characters into computers, but most keyboard-based methods rely on either pinyin phonetic readings or root shapes in Chinese characters...
- Naming law in SwedenNaming law in SwedenThe Naming law is a law in Sweden which requires approval of the names given to Swedish children. The law was enacted in 1982, primarily in order to prevent non-noble families from giving their children the names of noble families. The Swedish Tax Agency administers the registration of names in...
- for similar cases in Sweden