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HanCam · Free pinyin tool
My name in Chinese: Chinese name translator
Type your name in Latin letters. You get Chinese characters with pinyin, up to six renderings for each part and a note on where each one comes from.
This looks like Chinese already. For its pinyin, use Chinese name to pinyin
Chinese renderings
Type a name. Chinese renderings with pinyin appear here.
Dictionary: an entry from the tables written for this page. Reading: the Vietnamese or Mandarin reading of a character. Approximate: a mechanical rendering of the sounds.
- A sound-alike rendering is not a name given by a Chinese speaker. It only shows how your name can sound in Chinese.
- Most names have several valid renderings. The first one is the most usual in the tables, not the only right one.
- Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong write the same foreign name differently. The Western names follow mainland usage.
- The pinyin shown is Mandarin. Cantonese, Hokkien and Vietnamese read the same characters differently.
- Results marked Approximate are mechanical: nobody would necessarily write the name that way.
- Do not use a result for a tattoo or a legal document without asking a native speaker.
Chinese on paper, a sign or a menu? HanCam reads it live with your iPhone camera: the characters, the pinyin and the meaning. Get HanCam
This tool runs in your browser. Nothing you type or paste is sent to a server.
How the tool chooses characters
The tool looks for each part of your name in four places, in this order, and tells you which one it used.
- A dictionary of common Western given names and surnames, with the renderings used in mainland China.
- For Vietnamese names, the Han-Viet readings, the Vietnamese way of reading Chinese characters: Nguyen gives 阮.
- For Chinese families in Southeast Asia, the spellings of surnames in Hokkien, Cantonese and Teochew, such as Tan, Lim and Wong.
- If the name is in none of them, a fallback that splits the letters into sounds. It is the weakest result and is marked Approximate.
What it cannot do
It cannot give you a Chinese name in the sense a Chinese person has one. A sound-alike only copies how a name sounds. It carries no meaning chosen for you and no family tradition.
Names from Slavic, Indian, African and Nordic languages are the weakest, and a Vietnamese given name often has no firm Chinese character. The badges show how sure the tool is, but only a native speaker can tell you what they would choose.
Mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong
The same foreign name is written differently in each place, and the pinyin is Mandarin only. The tool follows mainland usage. The Traditional setting changes the characters, not the choice of rendering. One example:
| Place | Michael Jackson |
|---|---|
| Mainland China | 迈克尔·杰克逊 |
| Taiwan | 麥可·傑克森 |
| Hong Kong | 米高·積遜 |
How Chinese names are really chosen
A Chinese given name is chosen for its meaning: a virtue, a hope, a line of poetry, or a generation character shared by siblings or cousins. The family name comes first, and the characters are picked with care, often together with the family.
A Chinese friend who gives a foreigner a name usually starts from the sound and then finds characters with a good meaning. For a name you will really use, ask a native speaker to choose it with you.
Already have a Chinese name and want its pinyin with tone marks? Chinese name to pinyin
Chinese names on cards and signs
This tool turns a name you type into Chinese characters. For a Chinese name on a business card, a door sign or a book cover, HanCam reads the characters with the camera of your iPhone or iPad and shows them with pinyin and tone marks, and the meaning.
Read Chinese you cannot copy: signs, menus, books and screenshots.
Free: reading is unlimited, copying 10 times a day. One-time Premium purchase, no subscription. iPhone and iPad, iOS 18 or later.
Questions and answers
Is this my real Chinese name?
No. It gives common ways to write the sounds of your name in Chinese. A real Chinese name is chosen for its meaning, and a Chinese friend or teacher can choose one with you.
Why does the tool show several renderings?
Most names can be written in more than one way, and each way is valid. The list starts with the most usual one in the tables. Pick the one whose look and meaning you like, or ask a native speaker.
What is my Vietnamese name in Chinese?
Vietnamese names come from Chinese characters (Han-Viet). The tool gives the usual character for common family names, such as 阮 for Nguyen, and for given names the characters that are read with that syllable. A given name often has no single correct character: ask your family which one they use.
Which rendering is right for mainland China, Taiwan or Hong Kong?
The Western names in this tool follow mainland usage. Taiwan and Hong Kong often write the same name with other characters, and the Traditional setting changes only the script. For another place, ask someone from there.
Can I use the result for a tattoo or a legal document?
Not without asking a native speaker first. A sound-alike can look odd or carry a meaning you do not want, and results marked Approximate are mechanical. Have a native speaker check the characters before you commit to them.
Why does my family name have several characters?
Spellings such as Tan, Ng or Wong come from Hokkien, Cantonese or Teochew, and one spelling can stand for more than one Chinese family name. Your family knows which character it uses. Ask a relative or look at an old document.