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The Many Names of
Emil Chau Wakin:
An
Introduction into Chinese Names
Okay okay...this is
admittedly an article for nerds like me who love comparative
linguistics, and who actually lose sleep at night over such
overwhelming, earth-shattering questions as..."What is the deal with
Wakin's name, anyway?" 
If
you’ve been a fan of Wakin’s for any amount of time,
you’ve probably seen him referred to by many different
names. In the West we primarily know him as Emil Chau. Most of his albums say Emil Chau on the
cover. You do searches online using the name Emil Chau. So, why does
everyone call him Wakin?
First of all, let us
begin our discussion with the name, Emil. Where did it come from?
Emil is basically a
nickname. Many modern Chinese, especially if they have some interaction with Western culture, will
often choose for themselves a Western first name.
Click the link below to visit the WWS and read the story of how Wakin
chose the name
Emil.
Okay,
so that answers that question. But in order to further understand
the many names of Emil Chau Wakin, it is essential to
have a bit of background into Chinese names, dialects,
and name writing customs.
Emil Chau’s given name is
 . What is
confusing is that there seems to be no real standard "spelling" as such
for it in a Western alphabet. It seems to be spelled out more or less as
it is pronounced in either Cantonese or Mandarin.*
Cantonese and Mandarin are two
different Chinese dialects.** Cantonese is spoken in Hong Kong, while
Mandarin is the new standard language across China. Chinese names,
while consistent, are pronounced and "spelled" differently in these two
dialects. That is why some pages will refer to him by his Mandarin
'name', while others favor his Cantonese spelling and pronunciation. The reason for
this, is that
is his name
written in either language. It is only "spelled" differently when
converted into a Western alphabet.
Further, it is important to realize that Chinese names
are also written last name first, in honor of the
family. This is opposite of the way we write our
names in the West, which is, of course, first name
first. As the West and the East continue to
influence each other culturally, it is not unusual to
find Chinese names reordered into a Western format.
Okay, so having said
all of that, what is his name?
Though pronounced and spelled differently in Mandarin
and Cantonese, his name is actually the same.
Chau Wa Kin is the Cantonese spelling and
pronunciation. Since Wakin was born and raised in
Hong Kong, his native language is Cantonese, and so is
his name. Spelling variations on this include Chow, Chou, Chao, or in
Japan, Chaw. His first name, Wa Kin, or Wah Kin, is often combined into one word,
"Wakin, or WaKin." It doesn’t seem to matter what combinations of the
above spellings occur. You can even find his name written Western
style—Wakin Chau.
In Mandarin, his name
is pronounced and spelled Zhou Hua Jian.
(The o in Zhou is long, like in "owe". Sometimes Zhou is even pronounced with a J instead of a Z, like Joe.) Hua Jian is his first name, and
can also be seen written like HuaJian, Hua Chien or Hwa Jian.
Again, pronunciation seems to be the only guide to spelling in a Western
alphabet.
So if you’re wondering which name is
correct…yes! All of
his names can pretty much be used interchangeably. When wishing to
include both his English name, Emil, and his Chinese name, it can be
written most accurately as Emil Chau Wakin, although I have also
seen it written also as Emil "Wakin" Chau.
Though throughout most of the 1990's, he was primarily
called Emil, currently it would seem, that he would
prefer to be known as Wakin or Hua Jian. His
personal website is called wakin.com.
This website refers to him as Wakin Chau, and most other current
websites also refer to him as Wakin or Hua Jian, as opposed to Emil.
Though some fans like myself, tend to flip back and
forth from time to time, most fans also call him Wakin.
But
without knowing the ins and outs of all the above, it
can be quite confusing for a new fan, especially here in
America and the Western world. Additionally, all of the above
information is particularly helpful when you are doing searches for
merchandise and information online, since sometimes using the alternate
spellings and word orders can turn up more stuff than you would find otherwise.
*The official word for the spelling
of Chinese words in a Western alphabet is called
"pinyin."
**There are at least eight primary Chinese
"dialects". While they all belong to the same language family, they are
each as different from the other as French is to Spanish. They are
still called "dialects" however, even though "language" is perhaps a
more correct term. (Boye Lafayette De Mente, Survival Chinese,
2004).
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