What's in a Name: A Cross-Cultural Communication Project
From APEC HRDWG Wiki
In international business environments, an understanding of the different cultural norms and values is necessary to avoid any moral conflicts or business-ethic dilemmas that may arise out of a simple misunderstanding. In dealing with multiple cultures, you may encounter names that you cannot even pronounce, much less spell. In some cases, you won’t have a clue which one is the first name or which is the surname.
Below, students are asked to reflect on the meaning(s) of their names and the culturally imposed roles associated with them. These activities could be enhanced by using a photostory approach or by digital storytelling. If you don’t have access to a computer or digital camera, you can simply ask students to bring pictures or any visuals that could aid their presentations in class.
Contents |
Content Objectives
- To reflect on the meaning(s) of names and the culturally imposed roles associated with them
- To gain a better understanding of classmates’ cultures and naming practices
- To learn how to respect other people whose name(s) may sound or look foreign or different from others
Language Objectives
- To use present tense when describing the meaning of a name (e.g., a name that is Chinese, Thai, American, etc.)
- To use past tense when sharing and discussing how a student got his or her name, who gave the name, why it was given, how it was chosen, and so forth
Activity
It might be useful to look at the slide show on this wiki page.
PRETASK (Project) DISCUSSION
1. Ask students if they have heard of Romeo and Juliet, the story. What was it about? Discuss the relevance of the story and connect it to the theme of the lesson: What’s in a name?
Juliet:
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."
Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)
Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet meet and fall in love in Shakespeare's lyrical tale of "star-cross'd" lovers. They are doomed from the start as members of two warring families. Here Juliet tells Romeo that a name is an artificial and meaningless convention, and that she loves the person who is called "Montague," not the Montague name and not the Montague family. Romeo, out of his passion for Juliet, rejects his family name and vows, as Juliet asks, to "deny (his) father" and instead be "new baptized" as Juliet's lover. This one short line encapsulates the central struggle and tragedy of the play. (2010)
2. Ask students, “Why does a person’s name matter?” Students should be able to provide the following answers (or something close): A name represents your identity, ethnicity, nationality, and gender. It also makes it easier to trace family history.
3. Show the class a short video, “Who’s on First?” by Abbot and Costello. (This diagram of the baseball field might be helpful.) Ask your students, aside from the fact that it made them laugh, what was the video all about? They should be able to tell you that it was a terrible case of people misunderstanding each other simply because of their unique names.
4. Discuss with students the meaning of Onomastics: the branch of lexicology that studies the forms and origins of proper names, and naming practices (Crystal, 1999).
- The word is derived from the Greek word őνομα (onoma), meaning name.
- Toponymy or toponomastics, the study of place names, is one of the principal branches of onomastics.
- Anthroponomastics is the study of personal names.
5. Discuss name order.
Most of Western culture uses the name order indicated by the common synonymous phrases "first name" for personal name and "last name" or "surname" for family name. However, this is inconsistent with traditional East Asian and Hungarian usages, which place the family name before the personal name. (Henning, 1995)
6. Introduce the “Four Categories” that discuss the categories of naming:
- Surnames derived from first names include Johnson, Williams, and Thompson. Most often they are patronymic, referring to a male ancestor, but occasionally they are metronymic, referring to a female ancestor.
- Occupational surnames refer to the occupation of the bearer. Examples include Smith, Clark, and Wright.
- Locational or Topographic surnames are derived from the place that the bearer lived. Examples include Hill, Woods, and Ford.
- Surnames derived from Nicknames include White, Young, and Long.
7. Give the students their turn to discuss. Share with the class the etymology (meaning and history) of your name. Do a quick class survey. Ask them the following questions:
- Who gave you your name?
- Do you know what your name stands for?
- If your name is not English, how many of you also have English names? Who gave you this name? Do you know what your English name means?
- Is your name prone to misspelling, mispronunciation, or confusion?
Enrichment…
These activities can be turned into an assignment.
Ask students to visit Behind the Name and find out what their names mean. For non-Chinese students, you can ask them to visit the site Mandarin Tools and ask them to get a Chinese name (just for fun) based on their English name and share with the class what their Chinese name means.
The Photostory Project
Note: You should give students ample time to do this. (Suggested time: 2–3 weeks)
- Open PowerPoint program from your computer.
- The first slide must contain a title for your photostory.
- The purpose of the Power Point is to explain the meaning of your name.
- Find out what your name means. Ask family; check books and/or the Internet.
- Do you think the meaning of your name represents your character and personality?
- Who gave you your name? Would you like to change it? Why or why not?
- Find out what your name means. Ask family; check books and/or the Internet.
- Create your photostory slides. Add text and photos to visually present your ideas.
- Save your PowerPoint slides as jpeg files. Once you're done, you are now ready to create your photostory.
- Download Windows Movie Maker .
- Check out this page for tips on using Windows Movie Maker.
- Visit this page and scroll to the bottom to view examples of students’ photostories.
Materials
- Computer with PowerPoint software installed
- Digital photos (of themselves, family, etc.)
Category
Cross-cultural communication skills: Onomastics, language and culture, business ethics
Learning Theme
Learning to live together; learning to work together
Resources
Crystal, D. (1999). Onomastics. In A Dictionary of Language (2nd ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Chicago University Press
Henning, J. (1995). Gymnastics with Oomastics. Retrieved from www.langmaker.com/ml0103a.htm
RichyLi.com. (2008). Retrieved from www.richyli.com/name/index.asp (for students who read Chinese)
Yeh, A. (2010). What’s in a name? Retrieved from lc97.pbworks.com/onomastics
What's in a name? That which we call a rose (2010) Retrieved from www.enotes.com/shakespeare-quotes/what-s-name-that-which-we-call-rose
Author
Aiden Yeh, University of Birmingham, PhD Candidate; Lecturer, Chinese Taipei
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