The award of host the 2008 Olympic Games belong to toBeijing , and excitement has been scatter across China since 2001 when the city was selected . Whil­e Americans might lionise such an juncture by collecting limited edition b­obblehead chick or donning a pet team jersey , the Chinese are mark the outcome with a stiff show of civil pride – including a case of child fever .

Aug. 8 , 2008 , at 8:08 p.m. , the time when the opening ceremony is schedule to get , is deal lucky , and prospective parents are hoping to bring pleasure and fortune to their families by welcoming " Olympic babies . “­ While chance are little for most babies to be delivered at that accurate time , some parent are considering other ways to bring Olympian luck to their newborn infant : specialized baby names .

Chinese name do n’t work the same as names in Western countries . The first obtrusive difference is that Chinese words are represented by thousands of multistroke character instead of an alphabet . Specific to naming , the order of the given name and surname ( family name ) is transpose . In the West , if your given name is John and your surname is Smith , you are known asJohn Smith . In China , however , your surname would amount before your give name : Smith John .

While there are 4,100 Chinese surnames , only about 100 are used commonly ; in 2006 , the top four surname were Li , Wang , Zhang and Liu , severally [ source : Xinhua News Agency ] . In a state with more than 1 billion multitude , more than 60 million people share the Liu surname – almost 6 percent of the Chinesepopulation . A unique , single name is toilsome to come by . parent seek to create baby names that are original or that ponder modern themes.­ In this tradition , thousands of parent are getting catch up in the spirit of the games . Find out more , next .

Olympic Baby Names

trend in Taiwanese child names touch on societal themes , nature and celebrity .

Some parents pick out words such as " responsibility " ( Ze Ren ) or " social security system " ( She Bao ) for their children , and more than 6,600 Chinese are named for " democracy " ( Min Zhu ) [ reference : Xinhua News Agency ] . Some parent match their family name with a give name to create words ; for instance , the Taiwanese character " He " and " Xie " together ( He Xie ) entail " harmony . "

According to China ’s Identification Numbers Search Service Center , part of the Ministry of Public Security , more or less 3,500 shaver have been namedAoyun(meaning " Olympics " ) [ source9News.com , KUSA - TV ] . Some people , mostly males , have Aoyun as their given name , and many parents with the cognomen Yun are choosing to blend their cognomen with the give name Ao to create the Holy Writ .

parent searching for creative public figure are also looking to the five BeijingOlympicmascots , the " Fuwa " : Bei Bei the Pisces , Jing Jing the Ailuropoda melanoleuca , Huan Huan the Olympic fire , Ying Ying the Tibetan antelope and Ni Ni the swallow . Together –Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni– they intend " Beijing welcomes you ! " More than 4,000 Chinese have been identify for the mascot : Bei Bei ( 880 masses ) , Jing Jing ( 1,240 people ) , Huan Huan ( 1,063 masses ) , Ying Ying ( 624 people ) and Ni Ni ( 642 the great unwashed ) [ source:9News.com , KUSA - TV ] .

appellative habits are n’t the only path the Olympics are influencing Chinese culture . The government has launch ego - betterment campaigns to boost public etiquette and civilise good manner in preparation for its Olympic hosting duty . In Beijing , for example , the public is being asked to restrict its notorious spit riding habit – local occupier are asked to use napkins or bags , and fines are imposed on people who are catch spitting in the street .

Local and government functionary are also trying to ameliorate and standardise English translations on signs and amend hospitality toward stranger , all in an effort to make outsider more comfortable during their sojourn . So long to the infamous Dongda Anus Hospital ( now known as the Dongda Proctology Hospital ) .

And ego - advance is n’t just propose , it ’s commit . The 11th mean solar day of every calendar month is Queuing Day , when people are boost to practice wait in line instead of crowding and jumping queues . Seat - giving Day , held on the 22nd of each calendar month , promotes to commuters the idea of reach up rear end for the aged , children , significant women and the handicapped while riding public expatriation .

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