What is my Chinese name?
There is no single Chinese version of an English name. You can get one in two ways: a sound-alike, which spells the sound of your name in Chinese characters, or a chosen Chinese name, picked for its meaning the way Chinese families name a child. Here is how each one works, and how to introduce yourself with it.
A sound-alike: transliteration
Transliteration, 音译 (yīnyì, “sound translation”), writes the sound of a foreign name with Chinese characters. Newspapers, publishers and translators follow standard forms, so most common English names already have a familiar spelling:
| English name | In Chinese | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| Emma | 艾玛 | Àimǎ |
| Olivia | 奥利维亚 | Àolìwéiyà |
| Michael | 迈克尔 | Màikè’ěr |
| David | 大卫 | Dàwèi |
| James | 詹姆斯 | Zhānmǔsī |
These spellings help people recognize your English name in Chinese text. But their characters are picked for sound, not meaning, so the result reads as a foreign name written in Chinese rather than as a Chinese name.
A chosen Chinese name
A Chinese name is built differently. The family name comes first, usually one character, such as 王 Wáng, 李 Lǐ or 张 Zhāng. The given name follows, usually one or two characters, each chosen for its meaning, its sound and how it looks when written.
Chinese families have long read a birth chart before choosing a name. The BaZi tradition reads the balance of the Five Elements in the moment you were born. When a chart is short of the element that supports it, the name brings that element in; the tradition calls this supplementing (补, bǔ). This is the meaning the tradition gives a name, not a promise about your life.
A chosen name does not have to sound like your English name. To a Chinese speaker, it sounds like a person’s name rather than a translation. This one was chosen for a fictional reader with a Yang Fire Day Master:
Chinese name榕澄
Her full sample reading shows how the name was chosen from her chart.
Side by side
| Sound-alike | Chosen name | |
|---|---|---|
| Based on | The sound of your English name | Meaning and sound, traditionally guided by a birth chart |
| Length | As many characters as your name has sounds | Two or three characters, with the family name |
| To a Chinese speaker | A foreign name in Chinese | A person’s Chinese name |
| Useful for | Being recognized by your English name | A name to use in class, at work or with friends |
Saying your name in Chinese
To introduce yourself, say 我叫 (wǒ jiào, “I am called”) and then your name. To give your Chinese name, say 我的中文名字是 (wǒ de Zhōngwén míngzi shì, “my Chinese name is”).
- 我叫艾玛。Wǒ jiào Àimǎ.“I’m Emma.”
- 我的中文名字是榕澄。Wǒ de Zhōngwén míngzi shì Róngchéng.“My Chinese name is Róngchéng.”
- 你叫什么名字？Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi?“What’s your name?”
Mandarin has tones, so the marks over the vowels matter. Every name we choose comes with its pinyin and a button to hear it.
Do you need a family name?
Not to begin with. The names we choose are two-character given names, and we do not assign a family name. Friends and family often use a two-character given name on its own. If you later want a full Chinese name, you can add a family name, for example one that echoes the first sound of your own surname. A Chinese teacher or a fluent friend can help you choose.
Get a name chosen from your birth chart
Enter your birth date, time and place. We calculate your Four Pillars by fixed rules, read which elements your chart needs by the classical method, and our AI helps choose two characters from a checked list.
Your name, the meaning of each character and why it fits your chart are free.
Get my free Chinese nameBefore using any Chinese name for a tattoo, a document or a brand, ask a fluent Chinese speaker to check it.