I spent a lot of time and research coming up with my name. Tell me what you think.

[Codisha]

忠自 科迪 or 'Zhōngzì Kēdí' for my name in English, 'Cody Johnston'. I really didn't like the the original form of 'Johnston' in Mandarin. It had way too many characters, and it didn't seem 'authentic', if that makes sense. I'm open to suggestions. I would really like to find a good name to start my journey learning Putonghua.

[Moshen]

Nope.  Chinese names almost always consist of just two or three characters.

[Codisha]

Yes, I understand that. If I can’t for authenticity, I can at least go for originality. I think it sounds unique   

[abcdefg]

On 11/8/2022 at 2:01 PM, Codisha said:

I would really like to find a good name to start my journey learning Putonghua.

 

Not really necessary to have a Chinese name at the start of the journey. 

 

(I removed the rest of my rant.)

[vellocet]

Four characters sounds like a Japanese name.

 

Foreigners should never choose their own Chinese names.  These names don't have to relate whatsoever to their English names.  They don't need to sound the same, have the same meaning, or be similar in any way.  

 

At some point you'll need a Chinese name because you'll start talking to people who don't speak English.  It can be put off until then.  And even then, get your teacher or Chinese friends to give you a name.  Foreigners always pick names that have some derogatory meaning that they never realize. 

[Lu]

I can tell from the characters you picked that you did put a lot of thought into this name, but as others already said, unfortulately it doesn't work, not as a Chinese name and also not as a transliterated foreign name.

 

But you don't need a Chinese name to start learning! You just need a textbook and, preferably, a teacher. Don't fall into the trap of spending a lot of time trying to find the best textbook/teacher, just pick the first one that seems decent enough and get started. As you learn more about the language, you'll learn more about Chinese names and transliterated names and you'll be able to pick a better one, with the help of your teacher or other people you meet.

 

(Also, do not get this name you picked as a tattoo.)

[Flickserve]

On 11/9/2022 at 8:40 AM, Codisha said:

If I can’t for authenticity, I can at least go for originality. I think it sounds unique

Rather like how Chinese people can make awful clangers when choosing English names. 
 

It would be good to get some experience with the language and then gradually get some opinions from native speakers of Chinese on choosing a Chinese name.

 

There’s no pressing urgency for a Chinese name and it’s one of those things you would like to get right rather than chopping and changing. 

[abcdefg]

I think finding a Chinese name early on kind of puts the cart before the horse. 

 

Quote

If I can’t for authenticity, I can at least go for originality. I think it sounds unique.

 

Having a name that is original and unique is not necessarily a good thing. Leads to lots of puzzled looks and awkward questions when you use it with native speakers. Often they are too polite to say anything, but when they hear these bizarre "foreigner-created pseudo-Chinese names, " they roll their eyes and inwardly groan.

 

They chuckle about it later, when they are privately relating the incident to a long-time friend or partner. "I met this foreigner today who called himself "Dragon King xyz123. Can you believe that? What gets into these people?"