Apr 23 2007
Lost in translation …周
周 zhou - denotes circumference; periphery; circuit; make a circuit; move in a circular course; all; whole; all over; all around; thoughtful; attentive; week; <elec.> ; cycle; help out (the needy); relieve; (Zhou1)the Zhou Dynasty (c. 11th century 256 B.C.); (Zhou1) a surname - explains the dictionary. As for surname it varied over the years. The oldest version came from Wade-Giles from mid 19th century, spelt as Chou, during Republic era (1911-1949) it was Chow. In pinyin which is widely used now (more or less since 1979) spelt Zhou.
The Zhou branch of my family members used all of the above, lol … I haven’t come up with a unified policy in dealing with the personal names, since I much prefer pinyin. But many of them had been known Chou or Chow most of their lives. It may not be wise to revert back to Zhou. However, Mao Tse-tung will be Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai Shek will be Jiang Jieshi; Peking will be Beijing, Nanking will be Nanjing … hope this will provide a little idea …
This is just something my researching experience that I have to deal with, matching up people and place names from English to Chinese or vice versa. In general if I know the place or person well, it’s not big of deal. By just read enough materials is the key. Like S.S. Chern 陈省身, (1911 - 2004) famed mathematician who’s family name in pinyin should have been Chen, but he used Chern instead, not in my wildest dream could I’ve predicted….
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