China This, China That: The Name Game

Discussion Open Forum
1

China This, China That: The Name Game…

Just curious. re the old Taiwan versus China name game thing:

This is Taiwan, but in Taiwan there are newspapers and companies called:

The CHina Post
The CHina Times
China Petroleum corpoation
CHina Trust bank
China Trust Hotel
CETRA
Republic of China (okay okay we all know that problem)
and the new post office
The CHina Post Corporation

When is this CHINA shite gonna stop?

I guess the DPP is powerless to change things overnight, and there have been some good changes already, like the GIO logo etc…

My queestion is this:

  1. What other names do you know that use CHINA in the acutal name, even though it is a Taiwan company, bank, newspaper or magazine (please list those you know of…)

  2. Since I am just a foreigner here, it is none of my business to call for change in names, but the local people themselves are aware of this and there are some movements already to rectify the name of Taiwan…
    …when do you think these changes in taiwan’s name will be finished? 2025? 2050? 3000? Never? Sooner than later? When?

NOTE: I think the real problem, just in ENglish, mind you, is that for many people overseas in English and other speaking countries, like Germany and France etc, there are real PR problems in how taiwan is perceived. Taiwan says: “We are Taiwan, we are not CHina, we are a soverign island state,” and yet foreigners overseas read about the China Trust Bank in Taiwan and they think taiwan is part of CHina. Or they attend a CETrA conference and then they ask why Taiwan still calls itself China?

How to solve this problem?

But first, let’s make a list of all the names curently in use here that use CHINA in the actual name… there must be 1oo. or more?

Go go go!

[Oh, and by the way, Happy New Year everyone at segueville; i hope the year brings you what you need… and health and happiness too. and thanks to Gus and mods for making this forum discussion possible… you guys put in a lot of work, thanks!

2

“Free China” is pretty good. Shame it’s not heard much these days. Clearly points out to even to a caveman that there’s another kind of China that’s not so free.

3

thanks, Monkey. …I heard there used to be a newspaper called the Free China Monthly or something. Is it still printed here? Or what’s its name now?

4

There used to be a Fosters Lager ad that was running in Australia a few years back. Anyway, it was to raise money for the Australian Olympic team, and for any can, stubby or long neck of Fosters drank, then CUB (parent company) would donate a certain amount of money towards our Olympic swimming team. Anyhow, one commercial had a couple of chinese guys drinking Fosters in a bar, while two Aussies were in the background drinking VB saying “thanks China”. Turns out, they should’ve been saying “thanks Taiwan” as the two guys were Taiwanese.

5

amos: figures.

6

China Airlines

This one really annoys me. It doesn’t even fly to China!!! (I don’t consider HK as part of China). So many people have no idea that it is Taiwanese and it also gets confused with the Chinese airline Air China.

The Taiwan News was the China News until 1999. I think it is a gradual process of change, but personally I wish they would hurry up about it.

Really there is only one name change that matters though. The name of this country. The ROC is dead and it is time it was buried and forgotten about.

7

wix99 wrote: "China Airlines

This one really annoys me. It doesn’t even fly to China!!! (I don’t consider HK as part of China). So many people have no idea that it is Taiwanese and it also gets confused with the Chinese airline Air China."

Oh yes, Wix99, that’s what got me to thinking about this, because it today’s China Post (sic), there’s a photo on page 1 about the Rose Parade in the USA, and the CHina Airlines (sic) float won for the 7th year in a row in the Intnal department.

I was thinking: every year this CHina Airlines float wins and makes headlines around the world, and people overseas read that the China Airlines float won and they will think, “oh. yes, China, that China, cool!”

So Taiwan loses out big time each time a name with the word CHINA appears in print in English here or overseas. What they write in Mandarin is not part of my beef here, that’s for others to solve. But in English, CHINA AIRLINES sounds very much like it is the national airline of CHINA.

What the eff?

I would be glad to see just three changes in 2003.

The China Post becomes the Taipei Post…

China Airlines, a govt airlines no less, becomes Taiwan Air…

and CETRA becomes TETRA…

wouldn’t that be wonderful?

But I guess all of this name changing stuff takes legislation and changing the Constitution and everything. Impossible mission.

Any more names you can think of?

I mean, imagine if a UK airline firm was called American Airlines!

Or if a US firm was called British Airlines!

What is wrong with Taiwan’s naming culture?Is it all because of the KMT’s monopoly and secret wish to go back to the mother/father land?

Ouch.

8

I think it was called the Free China Review

9

Actually, it might be a good idea to leave it China Airlines for now–at least until their safety record improves a bit!

10

Time to read back issues of Poagao’s News from the Renegade Province.

[quote]CAL name change refused
TAIPEI The request of China Airlines to change its name to “Taiwan Airlines” was refused by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications today, due to concerns by the government that such a name would damage Taiwan’s fragile international reputation…[/quote]

The “China” name that I find the most awkward is the government’s “Central Bank of China.” If they won’t change that “China” to “Taiwan,” the least they could do is make it the “Central Bank of the Republic of China.”

11

Taiwan is so crap at sport that it is doing itself a huge favor by playing under the name “Chinese Taipei.” They can change the name when they start winning?
And given China Airlines’ record, isn’t it a good thing that people assume the airline is from the PRC?

12

Good point. Maybe the English cricket team should heed your advive :smiley:

13

Academia Sinica. There’s one in China too, I guess the two academies disagree about which one is the true successor. But what would the corrected version be in Latin…Academia Taiwanica?

All the “National” Universities. Why can’t they just call them “Taiwan University”, “Taiwan Normal University”, etc.? On the other hand I guess it sounds like Taiwan is a nation, so whatever.

14

How about Academia Formosana?

Because they are state run (guólì), as opposed to some others that are private (sīlì).

15

I think it was called the Free China Review[/quote]

Its name was changed to Taipei Review so recently that the web page is still called fcr.html. It is quite a good magazine - You can get it in Caves and places like that.

16

Yes, Central Bank of China, unbelievable! Thanks for that one. LOL!

Another name I saw the other in the papers here is the Chinese Handicraft Center in Taipei. It should be called the Taiwanese Handicraft Center.

And another beef: when groups calling themselves Association of Overseas Chinese (and I think there is a ministry for this too), it should be “overseas Taiwanese.” They are not overseas Chinese, unless they are citizens of the PRC. Why do the newspaper still write this junk?

Are Americans really just a bunch of overseas Brits? I guess so.

Time for a name change, Taiwan.

I see the Taiwan News used to be the CHina News. Good change.

I see the China Post still calls itself by the most unusual name.It must be confusing for first-time visitors here from overseas. “Whataaaaaa? The CHina Post? I thought this was Taiwan!”

And CETRA at the World Trade Center: something like CHinese External Trade Relations Association, REALLY? PRC or ROC? Come on, boys!

Anymore strange China/Chinese names in use here?

17

Slightly off topic:

your coinage “Nyame Gyame” which I traslate to name of the game or something sounds pretty bad in my maternal tongue-Hakka.

Nyame = Your Mother (Use as an expletive equalling to English F** your m*****)
Gyame = His/Her Mother.

regards,

ax

18

The Central Bank of CHINA was established by the government of the Republic of CHINA in Canton (Guangzhou) in 1924. It was and still is the central bank of the Republic of CHINA.

Reference: A Brief History of the Central Bank of China

19

ax: thanks for the info. I didn’t know. {I changed it above, thanks…]

20

I saw another one today: THe Chinese Hotel Safety Associaton , in Taiwan of course. Gives out annual awards to local hotels. What gives?