Dalian University of Technology
Wang Zengyu (MATH77), 1/5/99, zw24@columbia.edu
Associate Professor of Finance, Columnia University, NY, USAEditor, I saw the web posting of my story. Thank you. But, my original writing is rough because it's only for you. Now that you posted it, let me polish it a little bit so that my old friends won't laugh at my poor English. Would you please post the polished story?
My English name used to be George. When I was in Dalian, China, many foreign teachers there called me George. One day I asked them why. They said someone, but forgot who, told them that was my English name. Knowing it's a name for good people like George Washington and George Bush, I decided to take George as my formal English name. Since my last name means "king" in Chinese, I was known as "King George" among Americans there.
I stopped using my English name since an incident happened during my first year in US. That was a rainy late night. A nice stranger (American) driving a brand new jeep offered me a ride at a bus stop. He asked my name after telling me his. As soon as I said "George," he withdrew his arm and refused to shake hands with me. "That's not your
name." "That's my English name." "That's not the name your parents gave you. Since you don't use the name they gave you at your birth, you don't respect them. Then I don't respect you." Since then, I always use my Chinese name.