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1、摘要在跨文化交际中经常会遇到这种情况，当两个人初次见面时会互相介绍自己的姓名。由此可见，姓名在文化交际中发挥着重要作用。在社会中，姓名也被看作是区别独立个体的标志并伴随人的一生。作为人类语言的重要组成部分，姓名被赋予了深刻的文化内涵。不同的姓名能反映出不同的文化。通过对中美姓名文化的研究，本论文分为五部分，旨在分析其所体现的中美价值观的差异。首先，前言部分主要阐述了语言的习得离不开一国独有的文化背景及了解姓名文化在跨文化交际中发挥的重要作用；然后通过举例，对比分析中美两国姓名的出现时间、起源、命名方式等方面的差异所体现的两国集体主义和个人主义、平等观、宗教观的不同；结论部分总结了姓名文化对文化
2、交流的影响及对今后英语方面的学习和两国间的交流有重要作用。关键字：中美姓名、差异、价值观ABSTRACTIn the cross-cultural communication, its commonly experienced by people that they introduce each other name when they meet at the first time. So, names play an indispensable part in cultural exchange. Its used by human beings as symbols, which usua
3、lly accompanies them for the whole life, indicating each particular member in society. As an essential part of human language, name is also bestowed with profound cultural connotations. Different personal names reflect different cultures. By making a close study of Chinese and American names, this p
4、aper attempts to display the differences in Chinese and American values. This paper consists of five parts. It begins with a brief introduction that says learning a language is inseparable from learning its culture, and name culture plays a very important role in the cross-cultural communication. Th
5、en by exploring the differences between Chinese and American name roots and examining the different characteristics of Chinese and American name, this paper shows that there are three different values reflected in the cultural connotation of name. Finally, this paper concludes that it can help peopl
6、e deeply understand the Chinese and American culture and its useful for language study and the cross-cultural communication.KEY WORDS: Chinese and American names, difference, valueContentsIntroduction (8)Chapter One The Exploration of Chinese and American Name Roots. (9) 1.1 Origin and evolution of
7、Chinese name (9) 1.2 Origin and evolution of American name (11)Chapter Two The Characteristics and Forms of Chinese and American Name. . (12) 2.1The Components and forms of Chinese name.(12) 2.2 The Components and forms of American name. (13) 2.3Different ways of naming between China and America. (1
8、4)Chapter Three The Cultural Connotation of Name. (16)3.1 The family psychologymore attention to surname than given name and more attention to given name than surname. (16) 3.2 Different equality value. (17) 3.3 Different religious value. (18)Conclusion. (20)Acknowledgements . (21)Bibliography . (22
9、)Introduction The cross-cultural communication plays a great role in modern society. The mobility of people and the contact between countries have greatly increased international communication. English, as an international language, has called for Chinese learners international awareness. People use
10、d to assume that learning the rules of English grammar and a large amount of vocabulary was sufficient in learning English. However, experience has shown that many learners, while knowing a lot about the target language were unable to communicate effectively in it（Zhang 1999:2）. Learning a foreign l
11、anguage well means to see the world as native speakers of that language see it, learning the ways in which their language reflects the ideas, customs, and behavior of their society, learning to understand their “language of the mind”(Deng & Liu 1991:160). Learning a language, in fact, is inseparable
12、 from learning its culture.Peoples name is one of the most universal language phenomena in each human society. It is the specific symbol, which people use to distinguish themselves from other people and which usually accompany them for the whole of their lifetime. To be exact, different personal nam
13、es reflect different culture because peoples name is the carrier of its respective culture. With this function, names play a significant role in peoples social interactions, political involvement, as well as in economical life.Meanwhile, in naming the newborns, people are inevitably influenced by th
14、eir cultural surroundings. They put in names their expectation of best wishes for the newborn, which manifests their value and aesthetical taste. The ordering of family name and given name and the preference of a certain name truthfully reveal a nations psychology and reflect its social reality. In
15、a word, personal names are windows for people to see through different cultures in different societies. By comparing and analyzing the origins and characteristics of the names, this paper will display three different values between China and America. Chapter One The Exploration of Chinese and Americ
16、an Name RootsAt first, people do not have their own names. With the development of economy and the reformation of society, people have to create a special sign to distinguish themselves from others in society. So name comes into being gradually in the world. But the time of appearance of name and or
17、igin of name between China and America are different. 1.1 Origin and evolution of Chinese nameIn Chinese history, family name appears before given name. As a mark of blood relationship, Chinese family name was first used around 5000 years ago. People used the surname to represent the whole family. W
18、hile the given name came into being much later until after Shang Dynasty to mark individuals. People get to know a person first of all through which family he belongs to. And it is secondary to know him by his own features. Surname, at first, in the tribal matriarchal society is the code, that later
19、 becomes the familys flag. A persons surname refers to his descendent blood relationship. Primitive people living in ancient times, due to blood relationship will be divided into different tribes; differences between the various tribes form their own names, these names are the name of the prototype.
20、After Shang and Zhou dynasty, because of the increasing in population and social development, Chinas last names become popular. In the long history of development, these names after differentiation, evolution, become the names we use today. After researching on the family name, this paper finds that
21、 different surnames have different origins. For example, some surnames evolve from the countrys name: names like Qi (齐), Lu (鲁), Qin (秦), Wu (吴), etc., are still commonly used today. The royal clan and the common people of Qi, Lu, Qin, Wu and other countries, to commemorate the old countries, use th
22、eir countries names as their surnames. Some surnames descend form the official post and the posthumous title of the ancestors. At the period of Western Zhou, the feudal lords son is called “Gong Zi”, and Gong Zis son is called “Gong Sun”. So people use “Gong-zi” and “Gong-sun” as their last names. T
23、he source of some surnames of some families relate to families totem and the name and job of the ancestors. Lu Qing gongs son, Gong zisui(公子遂) lives in the capital Lu East Gate. And children and grandchildren will use “Dong Men”(东门) as the surname. In addition, most of the original family names, suc
24、h as Wu(巫), Bu(卜), Jiang(匠), Tao(陶), are concerned with the jobs which their ancestors did before (Wang 2000:12). In the process of evolution of the surnames, many old surnames are abolished, while many new surnames are born. Among these surnames, some belong to this situation that people change the
25、ir names in order to evade the empires name. For instance, the family Ji (籍) in Qin-Han Dynasty change their name into Xi (席) to dodge the name of Xiang ji(项籍).Some are willing to alter their name by themselves. Take Tian Qianqiu (田千秋), the prime minister in Han Dynasty for example. He alters his su
26、rname to Che (车),because the empire HanWu allows him to take a carriage to the palace. It is a great honor for his family, so he changes his family name.Chinese people have surname first. With the progress of social development and increased population, interpersonal communication become more freque
27、ntly. To distinguish each other in a certain group, there is only a personal mark, which is name. Early humans names are also not so fixed. After the letter appears, the name originally expressed by oral stage evolutes to the letter. In short, the Chinese name in the original period of human society
28、 is a cultural phenomenon, its origins and development has undergone a process of imperfection to perfection, and become indispensable to human society.1.2 Origin and evolution of American name In the West, things are much different. American family name is originally used in the 11 th century and i
29、s not popularized until the 18th century. Before the 18th century, it is not very common for people to have family names. They are distinguished only by their given names. However, as society develops, people are compelled to apply family names to reduce the problem of homonymous. In the United Stat
30、es, at first, the persons name is produced on the basis of the name of the totem. Tribes within a group often regard a totem as their ancestors, and the name of this totem is also their name, such as birch, rose, fox, lions and so on. However, with the intensive human interaction, economic developme
31、nt and complex political factors, individual consciousness is on the rise, everyone wants to find a unique symbol to distinguish themselves with others. Then persons name appears. American surname appears much later than the name. The production of the name is gradually formed and fixed in the long
32、course of history. With the development of society, the use of single-name is no longer enough. Especially around the 11th century, due to alien invasion, the same name causes a serious phenomenon, which gives a lot of troubles to peoples communication. So people have to use a group of instructions
33、after the original name to be distinguished. Although the name jointed with description language has some role in communication, the structure appears cumbersome and is often omitted in conversation in order to simplify the form. For example, when people call John who is living in the mountains, Joh
34、n from the hill can be simplified to John hill. Thus, the formation of the embryonic form is the American surname. Description Language in the evolution of American surnames plays an important role. Through the changes of history, it turns into a fixed American surname. Therefore, the name is not on
35、ly the differences between each others symbols, but also a microcosm of the national culture.Chapter Two The Characteristics and Forms of Chinese and American NameName is a sign with the national feature. Each countrys name has its unique connotation and content and shows the characteristic of its n
36、ame culture. This chapter will analyze the differences in name culture of China and America from two partscomponents of name and feature of naming.2.1 The components and forms of Chinese name Most Chinese today only have one surname and one given name. But in ancient times, in addition to first and
37、last name people also have word (字)and number (号).In fact, “name” in ancient times, includes three parts“surname”(姓), “name” (名), “word”(字), each part having its own role, but still dependent on each other in a whole. “Name” is used to distinguish each other; “word” is the expression of virtue.Xiao
38、Ming is used in ones childhood, it is also called nickname .There is this habit both in ancient and modern times. People choose a nickname for their children before taking a formal name. In ancient times, up to the emperor down to the common people, all have nicknames. For example, Cao Caos small na
39、me is A Man(阿瞒). First Ming emperor Zhu Dis nickname is Chong Ba(重八). Modern people take the situation more common than before, such as Zhou Enlais nickname is big Luan(大鸾), Guo Moruos nickname is Wen Bao(文豹) . Although the role and impact of nickname is less than the official name and word, it is a
40、lso an important cultural phenomenon. Generally speaking, in ancient times the name is the stage call, the nicknames only can be used in ones childhood instead of growing up normally. Because name is named by parents, people regard it as important symbol. Superiors can call inferiors names, but for
41、peers and superiors, people can not call their names but words to show respect. Most ancient people characterize their words according to their names , such as the famous general Zhang Fei during the Three Kingdoms, his word is Yi de (翼德), which “Fei” is the name, and “Yi De (having wings)” is the e
42、xplanation on the Feiin English meaning “flying”. Another example is the Tang Dynasty poet Bai Ju Yi, his word is Le Tian (乐天), meaning that “home easy” is the reason, “happy” is the fruit .In addition to the name and the word, people also use number instead of name and word. Number(号) is a fixed al
43、ias and the honorific. For example, Li Bais number is Qing Lian Buddhist(青莲居士); Du Fu number is Shao ling Ye Lao(少陵野老). But with the changes in Chinese culture, words and numbers in the late have rarely been followed, after they are replaced by a pseudonym, stage name, nickname and so on. Chinas anc
44、ient titles are more complex than modern people, but name, word and number are adapted to the coexistence of people of different ages and different needs of the situation, but also have added new content for the Chinese name culture. 2.2 The components and forms of American name The American name us
45、ually has two parts: the given name which sometimes is called the first name or Christian name; the family name, which is also called surname or last name. Some people can also have a personal name or middle name. In America, the family name is at the end and the given name is in the front. American
46、 first name has many origins. But one of the most influential sources should be Christianity in Christian countries; soon after a child is born, the child is given a Christian name at a Christian religious ceremony like baptism by its godfather and godmother. Americans believe in Christianity, start
47、ing from the medieval church would monopolize the whole community, and the “Bible” and its tenets have permeated the national life and culture among the American people. Thus, in naming the most are from the “Bible”, such as Adam, Eve and John and so on. Medieval times are the darkest period of history. During this period, folks begin to seek the protection of God. Especially when in the name to the newborn, the babys parents hope to find a God i
