[ksec]

>I thought the given name in Chinese was almost always two characters. Is this not the case?

Mostly in Old, Traditional or Southern part of China.

[seanmcdirmid]

When was the last time mainland China had a leader with a one character given name?

But ya, it is a matter of preference.

[dis-sys]

> When was the last time mainland China had a leader with a one character given name?

The person commonly known as Sun Yat-sen in the west. His given name is 文, he used it to sign all official documents.

[seanmcdirmid]

Crazy that 中山 was his Japanese name....