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Introduction
Recently, a regional newspaper agency in Mainland China reported on the Chinese celebrity Angelababy by using her English name (Net Ease Entertainment, 2016). A reader complained about this, suggesting that Angelababy's Chinese name needs to be in the report as well. The reader's comment and the name Angelababy went viral on many online news outlets, and comments were posted about the problems associated with such an English name from a large number of Chinese netizens.
In many societies, it is a common practice to give children a name at birth. Personal names carry with them certain historical meanings about their bearers and about how they were born, their place of origin, family history, beliefs, and cultural values (Widodo, 2014). In the Greater China region, the practice of naming has taken an interesting turn among non-native English speakers as they have started to use English names in their professional workplaces, educational contexts, and other social settings. (Schmitt, 2016). Some of the main reasons why Mainland Chinese students and professionals adopt English names include the name having a likeable sound, the desire to become international, and accommodating the needs of foreigners (Sercombe et al., 2014). In Macau, the use of English names appears to be related to the socioeconomic background of the special administrative region and its commercial ties to other English-speaking places. Additionally, the English practice of naming reflects one's identity management because it projects a desired image or personal characteristics to the public (Cheang, 2008). In Taiwan, young English language learners have been observed starting to use English names, which serve as an instrument for language and cultural learning (Huang & Ke, 2016). Parents in Taiwan also believe that having an English name will facilitate one's language learning and intercultural communication. They see it as a salient building block of Taiwanese identity, a glocal identity that merges the global language of English with the local setting.
Based on this brief survey of naming practices in the Greater China region, it is clear that there are a growing number of people in younger generations who have positive perceptions towards adopting English names. Nevertheless, there are struggles between the forces of language and possible cultural homogenization...