1. Pingan Huang Confucius Institute at UNL phuang2@unl.edu Chinese Name Pronunciation and Greetings in Chinese August 13, 2013

2. 你 (n ǐ ) 好 (h ǎ o)! Hello! 你 (n ǐ ) 好 (h ǎ o) 吗 (ma) ？ How are you? 我 (w ǒ ) 很 (h ě n) 好 (h ǎ o) ！ I am fine. Hello!

3.  To understand characteristics of Chinese names.  To learn to pronounce some difficult Chinese names.  To learn to speak some most commonly used greetings in Chinese. Objectives

5. Population: 1.3 billion Area: 9.6 million sq km (3.7 million sq mi) - 23 provinces - 5 autonomous regions (Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Guangxi, and Tibet) - 4 municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing) - 2 special administrative regions (Hong Kong, Macau) Capital: Beijing Basic Facts about China

7. Chinese: - Should I have an English name to make people around me easy to call and remember me? But my name is given by my parents with such a good will and it is my identity, though. - Is he/she calling my name? it sounds so weird. Americans: - I run into Chinese students and researchers almost everyday. It is easier for me to call them by their English names. But I prefer to call them by their Chinese names to show my respect, though. - What did he/she say his/her name? Gee, it is so difficult to pronounce. What am I going to do next time we meet? Chinese Names: confusions and frustrations

8.  In Chinese, the family name comes before the given name. eg. HUANG Pingan in Chinese, but Pingan HUANG in English  Most names are coined by (grand)parents to have wishful connotations for the future life of children.  Given names cannot use the same character(s) as those in their parents and grandparents’ names.  Between close friends and colleagues, 小 (xiǎo) or 老 (lǎo) can be used in front of family names to address people younger or older than you.  Titles go after the family names. Chinese Names: features and characteristics

9. j like “j” in jeep eg. 蒋 (jiǎng) 、吉 (jí) 、贾 (jiǎ) 、娟 (juān) 、洁 (jié) q like “ch” in cheat eg. 秦 (qín) 、钱 (qián) 、青 (qīng) 、巧 (qiǎo) 、泉 (quán) x like a sound between the “s” in see and the “sh” in she eg. 谢 (xiè) 、许 (xǔ) 、霞 (xiá) 、馨 (xīn) 、晓 (xiǎo) z like “ds” in words eg. 祖 (zǔ) 、臧 (zāng) 、宗 (zōng) 、曾 (céng) 、子 (zǐ) Some difficult-to-pronounce Chinese names : initials

10. c like “ts” in eats eg. 蔡 (cài) 、聪 (cōng) 、崔 (cuī) 、曹 (cáo) 、才 (cái) zh like the "g" in urge eg. 张 (zhāng) 、周 (zhōu) 、郑 (zhèng) 、朱 (zhū) 、赵 (zhào) r like “r” in Ray eg. 任 (rèn) 、睿 (ruì) 、荣 (róng) 、茹 (rú) 、冉 (rǎn) Some difficult-to-pronounce Chinese names : initials (cont’d)

11. a like “a” in mama eg. 马 (mǎ) 、娜 (nà) 、莎 (shā) ai like eye eg. 白 (bái) 、海 (hǎi) 、开 (kāi) ao like “ao” in Taoism eg. 涛 (tāo) 、毛 (máo) 、郝 (hǎo) an sounds like “ah” with an emphatic “n” at the end (NOT like “an” in can) eg. 安 (ān) 、范 (fàn) 、艳 (yàn) Some difficult-to-pronounce Chinese names : vowels

12. Some difficult-to-pronounce Chinese names : vowels (cont’d) e like “ur” in blur (British pronunciation) eg. 哥 (gē) 、德 (dé) 、贺 (hè) ei like “ay” in way eg. 蕾 (lěi) 、培 (péi) 、美 (měi) i like “ee” in meet eg. 李 (lǐ) 、米 (mǐ) 、丽 (lì) ie like ”ye” in yet eg. 叶 (yè) 、 铁 (tiě) 、洁 (jié)

13. Some difficult-to-pronounce Chinese names : vowels (cont’d) u like “u” in blue eg. 陆 (lù) 、楚 (chǔ) 、吴 (wú) ou is like “ow” in low eg. 楼 (lóu) 、周 (zhōu) 、侯 (hóu) ang like “ang” in pingpang eg. 尙 (shàng) 、杨 (yáng) 、康 (kāng)

14. Chinese Pinyin and tones in 6 Mins: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9Ayvjy-Dgs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9Ayvjy-Dgs Pinyin table: http://www.quickmandarin.com/chinesepinyintable/ http://www.quickmandarin.com/chinesepinyintable/ Mandarin Pronunciation Guide: http://www.standardmandarin.com/basicchinese Some Useful Links

15. Saying good-bye 谢 (xiè) 谢 (xiè) ！ Thank you! 再 (zài) 见 (jiàn) ！ Bye!