[goodcharacters]

I recommend authors and public figures to decide on their own official Chinese names. Unless a well-known person declares his or her Chinese name, Chinese reporters have to make one up or see how others transliterate it. The Chinese language is full of homophones; thus, there are literally thousands of ways an alphabetical name can be converted into Chinese. Unlike most other languages, Chinese has no standard way to translate names.

There is no one central authority in regard to Chinese names. Reporters in China, Hong Kong, or Taiwan — each of these regions is its own trademark jurisdiction — often have their own ideas. This results in multiple Chinese names for the same person, each with its own meanings and connotations that often are not the best.