Hello Tomodachi’s
How are you this Wednesday morning? I came across an article yesterday and thought it would be a great idea to write about it on my blog since the topic is something that I have seen happening to others quite a few times in my life.
The article spoke from the writer’s perspective about their experience on how people treated calling her by her given name and how they called it hard. It was a somewhat lengthy read but a good read and I recommend you all to read it.
While reading her article it reminded me of when I was still in high school and how my, then, classmates and I were introduced to this Chinese girl that transferred to our school and who later on becomes my very good friend. She, of course, had a Chinese name and told us her name but too many of our classmates who were not familiar or exposed to hearing a lot of Chinese names at the time, it seemed hard to learn and say. Not to mention, this Chinese girl also did not seem to like her Chinese name and wanted to have a more “western” name and wanted to only be called by that name and my classmates were too happy to oblige to call her by a more “western” and “easier” name. At the time I did not question it although it did seem a bit wrong to me and I made sure to learn her Chinese name although from then on we all referred her to her new “western name” Stephy.
Though there were more instances that I have seen this sort of thing happening but with this blog I kind of want to rectify myself for remaining silent at the time even though I felt sad for these people and knew what was being done to them was wrong. No name is hard to learn and every name has meaning behind them that the person parents’ specifically chose for them. How dare others redicule it. And why are western names the only accepted names anyway? We should show our respect and consideration to others by properly learning their name, yes, even those “weird-sounding” names. Just because it may be a “foreign-sounding” name does not make it a “hard” name and that it cannot be learnt. It just means the name is different and not something you hear every day. What truly matters is if you try to learn the name instead of dismissing it and calling it hard.
Now, I really dislike when people make fun of others’ names (and will say so) and give them nicknames or give them more “western” and “easier” names just because they are unwilling to learn that person’s name. I am sure they would not like it if the shoe was on the other foot.
