Chinese Name Guide · Reviewed against a native Chinese naming consultant's notes
Why Chinese names put the surname first
The structure of a Chinese name
A Chinese name is 姓 + 名: one surname, then one or two given-name characters. 李娜 (Lǐ Nà) is surname 李, given name 娜. 张伟明 (Zhāng Wěimíng) is surname 张, given name 伟明.
Because Chinese does not use spaces between name parts, a name in pinyin is often written as two capitalised syllables — Li Na, Zhang Weiming — which is why the boundary is not obvious to someone who does not know the surname.
Why the order looks reversed in English
When Chinese names appear in English-language contexts, two conventions are common:
- Keep Chinese order: Wang Xiaoming. Common in academic publishing, official documents and increasingly in international media.
- Reverse to English order: Xiaoming Wang. Common in business and everyday use, so that English speakers use the given name naturally.
Neither is wrong; inconsistency is the problem. Pick one convention and use it everywhere — in email signatures, LinkedIn, business cards and forms.
Official documents and forms
Chinese passports already separate the two parts: the surname field holds the family name and the given-name field holds the rest, often run together (e.g. given name WEIMING). When filling in a Western form, match those fields exactly rather than reordering the name to look natural in English.
A practical rule: if a form asks for “surname / family name / last name”, the answer is the character that comes first in Chinese. If it asks for “given name / first name”, the answer is everything after it.
Compound surnames
A small number of surnames use two characters. These are the ones people most often split incorrectly:
- 欧阳 Ōuyáng — as in 欧阳修 Ōuyáng Xiū
- 司马 Sīmǎ — as in 司马迁 Sīmǎ Qiān
- 上官 Shàngguān
- 诸葛 Zhūgě — as in 诸葛亮 Zhūgě Liàng
With a compound surname, the given name is still the part that follows: 诸葛亮 is surname 诸葛, given name 亮. Writing “Ge Liang” would be wrong.
Common confusions
- Assuming the first syllable is always the given name. In English order it may be, but in Chinese order it is the surname.
- Splitting a compound surname. 欧阳 is one surname, not a surname 欧 plus a name beginning 阳.
- Hyphenating inconsistently. Some publications hyphenate given names (Zhang Wei-Ming), others do not. Choose one style.
- Changing the order between documents. The mismatch causes real problems with visas, bank accounts and academic records.
Frequently asked questions
Do Chinese names put the surname first?
Yes. A Chinese name is written and spoken as family name first, then given name: 姓 (surname) followed by 名 (given name). 王小明 is Mr Wang, given name Xiaoming.
Why do Chinese names appear reversed in English?
Many Chinese people reverse the order when using English, so that English speakers meet the given name first. Both orders are used internationally; the important thing is to be consistent and to make clear which part is the surname on forms.
How do I know which part is the surname?
The surname is the first character in Chinese order, and it comes from a much smaller set of characters than given names. Common surnames (王, 李, 张, 刘, 陈) are easy to recognise once you know a handful; compound surnames such as 欧阳 use two characters.
What about two-character surnames?
Some surnames use two characters: 欧阳, 司马, 上官, 诸葛. In these names the surname is still first, and the given name follows.
How should I fill in a form for a Chinese name?
Put the family name in the “surname” field and the given name in the “given name” field — do not swap them just because the Latin-script order looks different. On Chinese passports, the two fields are already separated.
Is it rude to use the given name first?
No. Using the given name first in English contexts is normal for many people. What reads as awkward is mixing formats inconsistently within the same document or conversation.