Chinese couple try to name son "@"

[Light]

Yes, more strange naming news.

Bizarre names not where it’s @, China says
Government upset by parents’ request to name son after e-mail ‘at’ symbol

BEIJING - A Chinese couple seeking a distinctive name for their child settled on the e-mail ‘at’ symbol — annoying government officials grappling with an influx of unorthodox names.

The unidentified couple were cited Thursday by a government official as an example of citizens bringing bizarre names into the Chinese language.

Written Chinese does not use an alphabet but is comprised of characters, sometimes making it difficult to develop words for new or foreign objects and ideas. As of last year, only 129 names accounted for 87 percent of all surnames in China, Li Yuming, vice director of the State Language Commission, said at a news conference.

Read More? - AP/MSNBC

Why '@'? Why not '!' or '$'? Or how about '?'

[benladesh]

Whats wrong with these people. Ruin the kids life if he was named like that. I don't understand why people can't think beyond amusing their little minds. We are talking about a human being, not an object.

[Inexistence]

These parents do have a slight reason for naming him that. The @ symbol is pronounced Ai Ta by the Chinese, which means 'love him'. I think that was what I read somewhere. But still, why not name him Ai Ta?

[Paul]

These parents do have a slight reason for naming him that. The @ symbol is pronounced Ai Ta by the Chinese, which means 'love him'. I think that was what I read somewhere. But still, why not name him Ai Ta?

Because @ is unique and original. Quite frankly, I think we just leave the kid, and his parents the hell alone, I mean, its their kid, if you want to your name your kid something different, what kind of reasoning would I need to object?

Stop being so self-righteous and let them get on with their life.

[Xerophyte]

Personally, I wouldn't mind having a name like that.

But maybe I just think that way because I dislike my name.
It's been around for over a thousand years as have most other names that come to mind and it's worn out and boring. This, however, is original, I don't see how it could "ruin" someones' life, and this kid could appriciate it when he's old enough to understand it.

And there's always that option to just change your name when you're older to basically anything you like.

[Sigh]

Stop being so self-righteous and let them get on with their life.

But being self-righteous is what we DO at PPT!

[.neko.]

Personally I think "Ai Ta", if that is correct, is a really pretty sounding name. I don't see the problem with coming up with new and original names.

[CWisgood]

These parents do have a slight reason for naming him that. The @ symbol is pronounced Ai Ta by the Chinese, which means 'love him'. I think that was what I read somewhere. But still, why not name him Ai Ta?

I'm Chinese, and I pronounce it as 'at'. o_0
As far as I know, NOBODY pronounces it as 'Ai Ta'.

Then again, I live in Hong Kong, which is like a westernized China. So in conclusion, I have no idea.

[Inexistence]

BEIJING, China (Reuters) -- A Chinese couple tried to name their baby "@," claiming the character used in e-mail addresses echoed their love for the child, an official trying to whip the national language into line said on Thursday.
The unusual name stands out especially in Chinese, which has no alphabet and instead uses tens of thousands of multi-stroke characters to represent words.
"The whole world uses it to write e-mail, and translated into Chinese it means 'love him'," the father explained, according to the deputy chief of the State Language Commission Li Yuming.
While the "@" symbol is familiar to Chinese e-mail users, they often use the English word "at" to sound it out -- which with a drawn out "T" sounds something like "ai ta," or "love him," to Mandarin speakers.
Li told a news conference on the state of the language that the name was an extreme example of people's increasingly adventurous approach to Chinese, as commercialisation and the Internet break down conventions.
Another couple tried to give their child a name that rendered into English sounds like "King Osrina."
Li did not say if officials accepted the "@" name. But earlier this year the government announced a ban on names using Arabic numerals, foreign languages and symbols that do not belong to Chinese minority languages.
Sixty million Chinese faced the problem that their names use ancient characters so obscure that computers cannot recognize them and even fluent speakers were left scratching their heads, said Li, according to a transcript of the briefing on the government Web site (http://www.gov.cn).
One of them was the former Premier Zhu Rongji, whose name had a rare "rong" character that gave newspaper editors headaches.

There is the news report I read on it.

I just think that the parents need to get past how cool a name is, and think how it'll affect the child later on. How do you sign your name up for something? A computer normally isn't set to accept the @ symbol. Yes, the child MAY like the name. The child MAY hate the name. You have to do what you think is best for a child.

I'm not intending to argue, I just think that this is a big topic that might come up again and again.

[Paul]

BEIJING, China (Reuters) -- A Chinese couple tried to name their baby "@," claiming the character used in e-mail addresses echoed their love for the child, an official trying to whip the national language into line said on Thursday.
The unusual name stands out especially in Chinese, which has no alphabet and instead uses tens of thousands of multi-stroke characters to represent words.
"The whole world uses it to write e-mail, and translated into Chinese it means 'love him'," the father explained, according to the deputy chief of the State Language Commission Li Yuming.
While the "@" symbol is familiar to Chinese e-mail users, they often use the English word "at" to sound it out -- which with a drawn out "T" sounds something like "ai ta," or "love him," to Mandarin speakers.
Li told a news conference on the state of the language that the name was an extreme example of people's increasingly adventurous approach to Chinese, as commercialisation and the Internet break down conventions.
Another couple tried to give their child a name that rendered into English sounds like "King Osrina."
Li did not say if officials accepted the "@" name. But earlier this year the government announced a ban on names using Arabic numerals, foreign languages and symbols that do not belong to Chinese minority languages.
Sixty million Chinese faced the problem that their names use ancient characters so obscure that computers cannot recognize them and even fluent speakers were left scratching their heads, said Li, according to a transcript of the briefing on the government Web site (http://www.gov.cn).
One of them was the former Premier Zhu Rongji, whose name had a rare "rong" character that gave newspaper editors headaches.

There is the news report I read on it.

I just think that the parents need to get past how cool a name is, and think how it'll affect the child later on. How do you sign your name up for something? A computer normally isn't set to accept the @ symbol. Yes, the child MAY like the name. The child MAY hate the name. You have to do what you think is best for a child.

I'm not intending to argue, I just think that this is a big topic that might come up again and again.

Computers aren't normally set to accept the @ symbol? What, did I wake up in 1995, or are you still there?

I mean, come on, it is just a name, and like someone said before, he can always change it when he's older. Names are supposed to be what the parents like, so if the parents of @ like that name, they have the right to pick that name for their child, just like the parents of Sarah liked Sarah Jane.

Are you seriously trying to say that we all should have practical names? Names with little or no creativity? Why don't we just get assigned numbers instead of a written name? I'd be JN 76 43 14 C. What about you?

[Tymaporer]

These parents do have a slight reason for naming him that. The @ symbol is pronounced Ai Ta by the Chinese, which means 'love him'. I think that was what I read somewhere. But still, why not name him Ai Ta?

No matter how it's pronounced, people are still going to call him "At Symbol" or something like that the first time they see it. I can see it now...the teacher reading off the attendance list on the first day: "Susie Jones?" "Here." "Mark Smith?" "Here." "...uh...At Symbol? O_o" *the kid on the left side of the third row tries to hunch down in his seat and be invisible*

[Paul]

These parents do have a slight reason for naming him that. The @ symbol is pronounced Ai Ta by the Chinese, which means 'love him'. I think that was what I read somewhere. But still, why not name him Ai Ta?

No matter how it's pronounced, people are still going to call him "At Symbol" or something like that the first time they see it. I can see it now...the teacher reading off the attendance list on the first day: "Susie Jones?" "Here." "Mark Smith?" "Here." "...uh...At Symbol? O_o" *the kid on the left side of the third row tries to hunch down in his seat and be invisible*

Firstly, people often have their names mispronounced for the very first time, secondly, you said the kid on the left side of the third row would try to 'hunch down' and 'be invisible'? You don't know he would have such feelings for his name, he may like his name, and of course, he may have mixed feelings about it.

Just think of Piscine "Pi" Patel from Life of Pi.

[Ski]

How about they find a compromise of sorts? They can name him "ai ta" using government-approved characters, but unofficially write it as "@". It may not work out for those who don't speak Mandarin, but I would think it'll work well enough for them. It's like a handy abbreviation.

[DM was on fire!]

I'm still claiming rights to name my child Leekspin Remy. And then I'll probably have a second child and name it Shoop da Whoop.

[Byakuya San]

I'm still claiming rights to name my child Leekspin Remy.

DM, if you do that, I shall crown you official queen(king?) of the universe.