<p>Chinese names are written (in Chinese) in the following order:</p>
<p><code>surname</code> <code>given name</code></p>
<p>In non-Chinese contexts, such as a database of mixed-nationality names, all names (Chinese or not) should follow the order given by the target language.</p>
<p>Taking one of the examples, <code>Lu Xiaojun vs. Xiaojun Lu</code>, the Chinese name order is <code>Lu Xiaojun</code> (surname, then given name), while an English name order would be <code>Xiaojun Lu</code>.</p>
<hr />
<p>Note that, for three-syllable names like <code>Lu Xiaojun</code>, it is often easier to determine the words corresponding to the given name and surname. Two-syllable names (e.g. <code>Li Ping vs Ping Li</code>) are more difficult; we can make educated guesses (the surname in this case is <em>probably</em> more likely to be <code>Li</code>), but Chinese characters are necessary to confirm this.</p>
<p>If you expect that at least +90% of the names are in the correct order, you can make an inference for classifying the surname and given name words for the two-syllable names, based on the existing three-syllable names, but this is really just guesswork.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-11-12T19:58:38.910Z
Excellent answer.
Anthony
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-11-12T19:37:38.147Z
2020-11-12T19:37:38.147Z
dROOOze
<p><strong>Question</strong>: I am constructing a sport database; which has names of Chinese players. Names are stored in Romanized alphabetical spelling. A recent concern has come up regarding <em><strong>a</strong></em> &quot;correct&quot; order by which Chinese names are <em>written down</em>, not necessarily spoken. For examples:</p>
<p>Deng Wei vs. Wei Deng</p>
<p>Le Maosheng vs Maosheng Le.</p>
<p>Li Ping vs Ping Li</p>
<p>Linmei Feng vs. Feng Linmei</p>
<p>Jiang Huihua vs Huihua Jiang</p>
<p>Lu Xiaojun vs. Xiaojun Lu</p>
<p>Any hard rules to go by. The expectation is that at least +90% are in the correct order. Chinese players make up for 2% of the names in the database.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-11-12T18:19:59.337Z
If Chinese names only make up 2% of the database, then the database is in English (or whatever the unifying language is), so Chinese name order is not relevant: You should follow the same pattern as for the non-Chinese names in the rest of the database. “Lu Xiaojun”, for example, is a Chinese name order, which writes the surname first, then the first name. “Xiaojun Lu” is an English name order, and should be used if your database is in English.
dROOOze
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-11-12T19:18:24.417Z
@dROOOze If you can answerize your comment  that would be great.
Anthony
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-11-13T02:54:40.010Z
@dROOOze -- Quote:- "You should follow the same pattern as for the non-Chinese names in the rest of the database" Does this means that if the database is in Chinese and only 2% are non-Chinese names, the Chinese name order should therefore be used? And the same goes for, say, Indian database, etc?
Wayne Cheah
<names><romanization><surnames>
Writing Down Chinese Names In Correct Order
# Writing Down Chinese Names In Correct Order

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-11-12)

**Question**: I am constructing a sport database; which has names of Chinese players. Names are stored in Romanized alphabetical spelling. A recent concern has come up regarding ***a*** "correct" order by which Chinese names are *written down*, not necessarily spoken. For examples:

Deng Wei vs. Wei Deng

Le Maosheng vs Maosheng Le.

Li Ping vs Ping Li

Linmei Feng vs. Feng Linmei

Jiang Huihua vs Huihua Jiang

Lu Xiaojun vs. Xiaojun Lu

Any hard rules to go by. The expectation is that at least +90% are in the correct order. Chinese players make up for 2% of the names in the database.

**Tags:** names, romanization, surnames
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: If Chinese names only make up 2% of the database, then the database is in English (or whatever the unifying language is), so Chinese name order is not relevant: You should follow the same pattern as for the non-Chinese names in the rest of the database. “Lu Xiaojun”, for example, is a Chinese name order, which writes the surname first, then the first name. “Xiaojun Lu” is an English name order, and should be used if your database is in English.  
> **username_0**: @dROOOze If you can answerize your comment  that would be great.  
> **username_2**: @dROOOze -- Quote:- "You should follow the same pattern as for the non-Chinese names in the rest of the database" Does this means that if the database is in Chinese and only 2% are non-Chinese names, the Chinese name order should therefore be used? And the same goes for, say, Indian database, etc?  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2020-11-12. Score: 1 | Accepted answer

Chinese names are written (in Chinese) in the following order:

`surname` `given name`

In non-Chinese contexts, such as a database of mixed-nationality names, all names (Chinese or not) should follow the order given by the target language.

Taking one of the examples, `Lu Xiaojun vs. Xiaojun Lu`, the Chinese name order is `Lu Xiaojun` (surname, then given name), while an English name order would be `Xiaojun Lu`.

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Note that, for three-syllable names like `Lu Xiaojun`, it is often easier to determine the words corresponding to the given name and surname. Two-syllable names (e.g. `Li Ping vs Ping Li`) are more difficult; we can make educated guesses (the surname in this case is *probably* more likely to be `Li`), but Chinese characters are necessary to confirm this.

If you expect that at least +90% of the names are in the correct order, you can make an inference for classifying the surname and given name words for the two-syllable names, based on the existing three-syllable names, but this is really just guesswork.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Excellent answer.  

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