CC - Item 5A - City of Rosemead Chinese Name StandardizationROSEMEAD CITY COUNCIL
STAFF REPORT
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JEFF ALLRED, CITY MANAGER
DATE: SEPTEMBER 25, 2012
SUBJECT: CITY OF ROSEMEAD CHINESE NAME STANDARDIZATION
SUMMARY
On August 14, 2012, the City Council discussed the need to standardize the Chinese
transliteration used to identify Rosemead using the characters 5 Willc� (lu6 ST mi). At
that time, the Council indicated its intent to adopt this Chinese transliteration but
delayed final action until September 25 in order to provide an opportunity for additional
review and comment by the community.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council approve (lu6 sT mi) as the standardized
Chinese transliteration for Rosemead.
ANALYSIS
Attached is the staff report that was prepared for the City Council's discussion that
occurred on August 14, 2012. At that meeting, the City Council indicated its intent to
adopt this Chinese transliteration for Rosemead but delayed final action until the
September 25 Council meeting in order to provide the community with further
opportunity to review and comment.
A press release (copy attached) was issued to various Chinese media outlets on August
15, 2012 announcing the City Council's intent and requesting public input or feedback
prior to the September 25, 2012 City Council meeting. Only positive responses to this
proposed transliteration were received from the public.
Attachments
ITEM NUMBER: -_
ROSEMEAD CITY COUNCIL
STAFF REPORT
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JEFF ALLRED, CITY MANAGER
DATE: AUGUST 14, 2012
SUBJECT: CITY OF ROSEMEAD CHINESE NAME STA NDARDIZATION
SUMMARY
Currently within the Chinese speaking community, there are multiple transliterations
used to identify Rosemead. The City Council will consider standardization of
Rosemead's Chinese transliteration. For Rosemead, it is proposed that the Chinese
characters r W�t`(lu6 sT mi) be authorized as the official Chinese version of the City of
Rosemead's name.
The Chinese characters that are proposed to represent Rosemead put forth a dignified
and professional image for the City. This particular selection of characters r rWf�i (lu6
sT mi) also appears in the widely circulated Chinese American and Chinese Canadian
newspaper World Joumal as the Chinese transliteration of Rosemead.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council approve , Wf-*w(lu6 sT mi) as the City of
Rosemead's standardized Chinese transliteration.
ANALYSIS
Since the Chinese and English linguistic systems are so different, true phonetic
equivalents between the two languages do not exist. As such, the transliterations of
English words in Chinese are not exact, which sometimes results in contextual
awkwardness. In addition to attempting phonetic equivalence between the two
languages, another factor that must be considered is the chosen characters' combined
meaning.
As the Chinese language has a more narrow range of phonetics than the English
language, it relies on other methods of word differentiation. Instead of solely employing
phonetic variation to determine linguistic meaning, the Chinese language also uses tone
and context to distinguish the meaning of a word or phrase. Consequently, it is possible
for a Chinese phonetic equivalent to be very close to its English counterpart in sound,
APPROVED FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA: ITEM NUMBER:
City Council Meeting
August 14, 2012
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but vastly differ in meaning. In Rosemead's case, a slight connection is present
between the commonly used Chinese characters A fa (r6u si mi) and the English
name Rosemead since a "mead" is a honey beverage and 11(mi) translates into
"honey ". However, that connection is not strong because Rosemead is originally derived
from the name "Rose's Meadow ", where "mead" is simply an abbreviation of the word
meadow.
The proposed version of the Rosemead Chinese characters more clearly distinguishes
the characters as a name of geographical place from a descriptive phrase. The three
commonly used characters jkf9UWi(r6u si mi) together directly translate to read "soft
like honey," which is a strange name for a city in a Chinese context.
AA(r6u), the first character in the current commonly used Chinese transliteration, directly
translates into "soft" in English. The revised first character ha(W) can mean "to collect"
or "to catch," but also is used in Chinese transliterations of geographical locations
beginning with the letter "R." The current commonly used middle character f9(si) is a
particle that signifies a simile or metaphor, whereas the revised middle character Wf(s�i
is a more neutral particle that has been used in other phonetic equivalents of English
place names. Lastly, the current commonly used character - V(mi), means "honey," as
previously noted, whereas the revised character -ItR(mi) means "close" or "secret ". This
revised character also is commonly used to transliterate "me" sounds from English into
Chinese.
Chinese
Pinyin
English Definition
Character
Pronunciation
9
7 �
rou
soft, gentle, pliant
luo
to collect/ to gather/ to catch
�Tkt
Sl
this, thus, such; emphatic particle
sj
resemble, similar to; as if, seem
nal
honey; sweet,• nectar
City Council Meeting
August 14, 2012
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mi dense, thick, close, intimate
Chinese
Transliterations Current Usage Pros Cons
of Rosemead
MILS
rou si mi
luo si mi
Commonly seen in local
Rosemead media and
signage.
World Journal, a Chinese
newspaper distributed in
both the U.S. and Canada,
uses this version. This
paper is cited as having
the largest circulation
among Chinese
Americans and Chin Ose
Canadians.
Familiar to
Rosemead
residents.
Currently
circulated
through print
and online
media outlets.
Close phonetic
Already widely
recognized
because of its
appearancein
World Journal.
Clear
distinction that
the character
combination is
a place name,
not a
description.
Presents a
professional
Direct translation
of characters into
English is "soft
like honey."
Is not as close of
a phonetic
equivalent to
Rosemead as
other versions.
In preparing this report and recommendation, City staff consulted with Mayor Pro Tern
Polly Low and City Council Member Steven Ly. Staff also consulted with Mr. Daniel
Deng, a local attorney and former journalist with strong ties to the Chinese - American
media.
Upon City Council approval of the recommendation, the City will notify various
applicable parties of this standardization, including media outlets and translation
services used by the City.
City Council Meeting
August14,2012
Page 4 of 4
PUBLIC NOTICE PROCESS
This item has been noticed through the regular agenda notification process.
Submitted by:
*q
Allison Lew
Administrative Intern
a
CITY OF ROSEMEAD `Today's Small Town America"
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: August 15, 2012
Contact Person: Linda Young
Title: Administrative Assistant
Phone Number: (626) 569 -2124
ROSEMEAD CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERING CHINESE NAME
STANDARDIZATION
Rosemead, CA — Since a standardized Chinese translation currently does not exist for the
City of Rosemead, the City Council is considering the Chinese characters fWjg�- (luo sT ml)
as standard Chinese characters.
Mayor Pro Tern Polly Low has advocated this action as a professional and
dignified image for Rosemead for City business purposes. The proposed Chinese
characters will also distinguish Rosemead's translation as a name of a geographical place.
City Council will vote on this action at City Council meeting on September 25, 2012 7pm at
City Hall.
For more information about Rosemead's Chinese name standardization, please
contact Linda Young at (626) 569 -2124.
F.° :;3