Hello Mr. Death! Researcher finds rare Chinese names

Source: Reuters

A man in China's southern province of Jiangxi has spent the last 20 years compiling a list of unusual family names, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Most Chinese people share a few common surnames, like Zhang, Wang, Li, Liu and Chen. The Chinese expression for "ordinary people" literally means "the old one hundred surnames."

But Cheng Yinglian's interest was piqued after reading a newspaper many years ago and discovering a person with the surname Gui, meaning "ghost," CCTV said.

Since then, he has scoured newspapers, books and other publications to find similar rare surnames, coming up with about 2,000 to date.

Those he has found include Ling, or "zero," Cu, or "vinegar," Miao, or "second" and Yi, or "one."

Superstitions related to names are still strong in China, and many parents go out of their way to give their children auspicious names which suggest they will grow up to be healthy, strong and rich.

While you can legally change your surname in China, the report did not say how many people had chosen to change theirs if they were unfortunate enough to be born a "death" or "ghost."

Ever notice Asian names (especially Vietnamese) names are always opposite the personality?

A girl who's named Snow is dark.
A girl who's named Nice is mean
A guy who's named Brave is a coward.
A guy who's named Strong is a wuss.

Girl called Chicken Dung changes her name

Source: Ananova

A Chinese girl who was named 'Chicken Dung' has had it legally changed now that she is an adult.

Zhu Xiansheng, the father of the girl, gave her the name on the advice of a doctor after she was ill as a baby and chicken manure was used to treat her.

She was named Ji Shi, which means Chicken Dung, but always hated the name, reports the Southwest Morning Post.

However, she was stuck with it until she was 18, the legal age for name changing in China, when she changed it to Yingzi.

"At last, she is no longer afraid to show anybody her ID card," said her father, of Lindong village, Fujian province.

"She had a serious illness when she was one, and she was sick for two to three months.

"We didn't think she would survive, but a local medical practitioner advised us to paste her with chicken dung while taking medications he prescribed," added Xiansheng.

The girl made a miraculous recovery and her parents formally named her Chicken Dung in tribute to her treatment.

But she hated the name and pleaded with her parents to change it from age of five when she would throw tantrums whenever anybody called her name.

"I always felt embarrassed when filling in forms or signing my name," said Yingzi.

AIYA!

Well it's actually not too surprising. I've run into alot of strange names from people in the country side. There's a family I know when they had a first boy, they named it "BOY" and when they had their first girl, they named it "GIRL". It's country folk you know.

Glad she can change her name to something prettier now :)