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question for Indian ppl

rh71

rh71

No Lifer
I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way... but I work in a large company that has a good number of Indian people (here in the US)... whenever I speak with them, a lot of times they think my last name is my first and just call me by my last name (on phone and on instant message chats). My name is Ed Lee... is there some reason (such as cultural) that they always call me Lee ? I do notice some of their names are reversed... the employee directory reversed theirs... (as I find out after speaking with them).

I've just never been aware of this and would like to understand because it has happened so many times with different people.
 
Originally posted by: rh71
I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way... but I work in a large company that has a good number of Indian people (here in the US)... whenever I speak with them, a lot of times they think my last name is my first and just call me by my last name (on phone and on instant message chats). My name is Ed Lee... is there some reason (such as cultural) that they always call me Lee ? I do notice some of their names are reversed... the employee directory reversed theirs... (as I find out after speaking with them).

I've just never been aware of this and would like to understand.
Click to expand...



Yes in India peoples names are listed as lastname, firstname.
 
One of them may have simply confused your last name for your first and then it caught on.

We have a lot here, too, and they all wear a special ring on their right hand. Is it like a family ring?

Just curious and don't mean to thread hijack...
 
^ You'd think they would adapt though... prob just random mental lapses.

About the employee directory, they are obviously supposed to be firstname, lastname but since it's swapped SOME of the time, it's difficult to know which is which. I think they should at least get them to fix it.
 
I work with a few dozens Indians, and have two sitting right next to me in fact. They've always called me by my first name; in fact, I don't know of anyone that has called me by my last name.
 
One other thing... is the name Srinivas supposed to be a firstname or lastname exclusively ? I've seen both and am just wondering if they don't mind being called by their last name... just another "understanding" question.
 
Originally posted by: rh71
One other thing... is the name Srinivas supposed to be a firstname or lastname exclusively ? I've seen both and am just wondering if they don't mind being called by their last name... just another "understanding" question.
Click to expand...

it could be either.
 
It seems common in some parts of south india. It's considered a formality, like calling you Mr. X but without the Mr. That at least is my understanding.
 
Originally posted by: rh71
I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way... but I work in a large company that has a good number of Indian people (here in the US)... whenever I speak with them, a lot of times they think my last name is my first and just call me by my last name (on phone and on instant message chats). My name is Ed Lee... is there some reason (such as cultural) that they always call me Lee ? I do notice some of their names are reversed... the employee directory reversed theirs... (as I find out after speaking with them).

I've just never been aware of this and would like to understand because it has happened so many times with different people.
Click to expand...

A lot of communities in South India, especially from my home state of Tamil Nadu, don't use family/last names. They use the first letter of their father's name as initial. So Srinivas Ramanujam would be R.Srinivas in India, but when applying for a passport (where a last name is required), he would have simply used his father's name as his last name. That is why you often see Srinivas as both first name and last name. Srinivas is a very common south Indian name.

In India calling a person by his last name, especially when the last name is short and has a ring to it, is quite common even in informal situations. For instance, a Srinivas Rao would often be called just 'Rao' even by his friends. In a lot of cases it is because the first name might be much longer than the last name. In your case, I think there is just some subconscious association with your ethnicity - it is not derogatory or racist, but I personally don't think it is very polite either to address someone by their last name without using the proper salutation (unless he or she is a very close friend and I have the liberty of word-play with their names). I am pretty sure they mean no offense, but I wish they would be culturally more sensitive. If it bothers you, you should just tell them to call you Ed 🙂
 
Don't Asians also have that reverse name issue? Like, Yao Ming for example, isn't he known as Ming Yao in China, I think?
 
Originally posted by: isasir
Don't Asians also have that reverse name issue? Like, Yao Ming for example, isn't he known as Ming Yao in China, I think?
Click to expand...

No, it's still Yao Ming. Yao is his surname and Ming is his given name. That's why his jerseys have Yao on the back and not Ming
 
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