Can someone help me pronounce a Taiwnese name?

Pepsei

Lifer
Dec 14, 2001
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perhaps he misspelled it? Hsiang is.... like shawn, let me see the jpg of said "Hcih".
 

Ilmater

Diamond Member
Jun 13, 2002
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Originally posted by: Pepsei
perhaps he misspelled it? Hsiang is.... like shawn, let me see the jpg of said "Hcih".
You won't see anything new because it was typed, and he said he went by the Hsiang part, but I thought he pronounced it "swong". Does that sound right?
 

Pepsei

Lifer
Dec 14, 2001
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Hsiang - ?(this word means smelled good, however, there are many ways to write Hsiang, that was just an example.)

Shawn is the closest english pronounciation. swong? hmmm that could also be part of a name, maybe he's going with hakka or taiwanese pronouciation?
 

Ilmater

Diamond Member
Jun 13, 2002
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Cool, thanks guys. It seems it's basically impossible to be sure of the right way of spelling this without just asking him personally. Is there any best way to go about this? Does anyone that's foreign get upset when we ignorant Americans can't pronounce your name?
 

Pepsei

Lifer
Dec 14, 2001
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the best way to do this and to make youself look cool is to have him/her write it in chinese so you can secretly ask us.
 

EvilYoda

Lifer
Apr 1, 2001
21,198
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Originally posted by: Pepsei
the best way to do this and to make youself look cool is to have him/her write it in chinese so you can secretly ask us.


Or better yet, study up on your Chinese characters all night and learn every derivative of Hsiang, so when you meet up next, ask "is it this *draw character* or which root character is it?"

Okay, that made no sense, but Chinese people will understand what I tried to say...I hope. :p
 

Phoenix86

Lifer
May 21, 2003
14,644
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Originally posted by: Ilmater
Cool, thanks guys. It seems it's basically impossible to be sure of the right way of spelling this without just asking him personally. Is there any best way to go about this? Does anyone that's foreign get upset when we ignorant Americans can't pronounce your name?

Ask them, repeat it and ask them if you are saying it right, shows interest too. ;)
 

abc

Diamond Member
Nov 26, 1999
3,116
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Originally posted by: Ilmater
Cool, thanks guys. It seems it's basically impossible to be sure of the right way of spelling this without just asking him personally. Is there any best way to go about this? Does anyone that's foreign get upset when we ignorant Americans can't pronounce your name?

i'm not a foreigner so I'm not directly answering your question, but it's not annoying unless you see something as easy as Wang or Chen...

come out as Wong or Chan when you've known each other for 1, 2, 3, months or more.

This is not even a pronunciation issue... this shows you don't give a fcuk courtesy to Asian surnames... even more so when it's otherwise clear the person is not laissez-faire or aloof, only when it comes to Asian names.

When I meet a Goldstein, I never turn it into a Goldberg, or a Wienstein the next day.

When i meet a ms. torcelli, it doesn't become ms. torlini the next week.. 'oh i'm sorry'...

I've heard an Asian client over the phone get peeved over the phone at my boss when i had a parttime job as a teen over this. My boss had her resume on his desk yet says the wrong last name over the phone, and after the call, he was embarrassed and had no excuse... it finally sank into him an issue he never saw the other side of... he for those initial seconds wanted to figure out why she was upset but he realized it.

 

blakeatwork

Diamond Member
Jul 18, 2001
4,113
1
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Originally posted by: abc
Originally posted by: Ilmater
Cool, thanks guys. It seems it's basically impossible to be sure of the right way of spelling this without just asking him personally. Is there any best way to go about this? Does anyone that's foreign get upset when we ignorant Americans can't pronounce your name?

i'm not a foreigner so I'm not directly answering your question, but it's not annoying unless you see something as easy as Wang or Chen...

come out as Wong or Chan when you've known each other for 1, 2, 3, months or more.

This is not even a pronunciation issue... this shows you don't give a fcuk courtesy to Asian surnames... even more so when it's otherwise clear the person is not laissez-faire or aloof, only when it comes to Asian names.

When I meet a Goldstein, I never turn it into a Goldberg, or a Wienstein the next day.

When i meet a ms. torcelli, it doesn't become ms. torlini the next week.. 'oh i'm sorry'...

I've heard an Asian client over the phone get peeved over the phone at my boss when i had a parttime job as a teen over this. My boss had her resume on his desk yet says the wrong last name over the phone, and after the call, he was embarrassed and had no excuse... it finally sank into him an issue he never saw the other side of... he for those initial seconds wanted to figure out why she was upset but he realized it.

???????

I got lost when you hit "reply"