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I chose 拳拳 as my own Chinese name, having the meaning of my name in mind. I got it from an online dictionary, so I would like to know what native speakers "get" from it, as in what are the connotations that a native speaker gets by such a name, since the dictionary cannot tell me that.

Some info might be useful: My name is Ernesto from old english Earnest which means honest, sincere, among other things.

So I translated Earnest in various online dictionaries, and from the resulting meanings I chose 拳拳 mainly because I liked it from an aesthetic standpoint and also because the character 拳 is part of the name Tae Kwon Do in Korean (跆拳道), a discipline I practice.

Is it reasonable to think that the word 拳拳 is related to the concept of "honesty, sincerity"?

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  • Thinking about it, 拳拳之心 does have an earnest meaning. What do you think about the name 诚拳 (honest fist)? It shares the same pronunciation as 成全。
    – Laguna
    Jan 19, 2012 at 22:20

2 Answers 2

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When I first saw it, I thought it meant fist fist. By the way, I think the same word appearing twice in name usually is only appropriate in girls' names; it makes the name cute. If you are a guy, you probably don't want that.

But there is a 成语（4 word idiom with well known meanings) that says 拳拳之心 (heart of 拳拳) which is an adjective that means forever remembering in heart.

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  • Good to know about the cuteness, I don't want my name to sound like a girl's :D I'll give the meaning I got, but I don't want to influence other's answers
    – Petruza
    Jan 10, 2012 at 21:45
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    it's so cute that it makes a girl want to hug you...maybe that's a good thing ;)
    – Laguna
    Jan 10, 2012 at 21:48
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    I do not agree with the point names of repeating characters are for girls. How about famous names like 薄瓜瓜 and 李禾禾? By the way, I believe 拳拳 is a very good name for guys.
    – Terry Li
    Jan 10, 2012 at 23:15
  • @Laguna what about adding 阿 or 小 :D ?? 阿拳 sounds pretty good.
    – user3871
    Nov 19, 2012 at 21:02
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It could be a good name only if you are not going to use it for any professional occasions. It sounds like a nickname for little kids, and you could totally keep it just for fun. But it should not be your Chinese name if your goal is to use it for job interviews or any business opportunities. You will need a better name than that.

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  • If I should ever make business or work with Chinese people, I'll just use my real name. As you say it's just for fun, but still, if it sounds cute, girlie or for kids, it may not be such a good choice.
    – Petruza
    Jan 11, 2012 at 14:18

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