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In the first two lists of names, read the English translation from top to bottom. The words in the first list make up a saying of Confucius regarding the Chinese view of life. The words in the second list make up a poem reflecting that view of the world.

The third list consists of two examples of how Chinese names are given, with each generation having a name in common. The fourth list demonstrates how the characters from the first list (the Confucius saying) can be used through a number of generations.

LIST 1: A quotation from Confucius' Saying

Generation 1	xio	cultivate
Generation 2	shen	personal life
Generation 3	qi	regulate
Generation 4	jia	family life
Generation 5	zhi	administer
Generation 6	guo	country affairs
Generation 7	ping	make peace of
Generation 8	tian	the whole world
Generation 9	xia	the whole world

LIST 2: A Couplet

Generation 1	xiao	filial piety
Generation 2	ren	love and kindness
Generation 3	qi	build
Generation 4	jia	family life
Generation 5	zhong	faith and loyalty
Generation 6	yi	justice and righteousness
Generation 7	jian	found, build
Generation 8	guo	country

LIST 3
Example 1: Generation 4 in Ding () household.
These four may be brothers, sisters, or cousins all in the same generation in the Ding family. They all share the same middle character.

	(Ding Jia yuan)	Ding family's first born
	(Ding Jia yu)	Ding family's jade
	(Ding Jia mei)	Ding family's beauty
	(Ding Jia cai)	Ding family's talent

Example 2: Generation 6 in Wang () household.
These four names represent four members in Wong household who belong to the same generation. They share the same third character.

	(Wang Shang yi)	Wong promotes justice
	(Wang Ming yi)	Wong loves justice
	(Wang Ai yi)	Wong loves justice
	(Wang Xin yi)	Wong believes justice

LIST 4: A multigenerational example in Ding () household

Generation 1:
	(Ding Xio quan)	Ding cultivates perfection
	(Ding Xio ren)	Ding cultivates love
	(Ding Xio de)	Ding cultivates morality
Generation 2:
	(Ding Shen jian)	Ding's personal health
	(Ding Shen zhi)	Ding's personal wisdom
	(Ding Shen shan)	Ding's personal goodness
Generation 3:
	(Ding Qi xin)	Ding to be one (regulates) heart
	(Ding Qi li)	Ding to be one force
	(Ding Qi bei)	Ding to be all ready
Generation 4:
	(Ding Jia yuan)	Ding family's first born
	(Ding Jia yu)	Ding family's jade
	(Ding Jia mei)	Ding family's beauty
	(Ding Jia cai)	Ding family's talent

All lists reprinted with permission from Echoes of China.