Should Burmese people adopt surnames?

WITHOUT the use of surnames to help people trace their family histories, it would have been quite difficult for Mrs Lynne Cheney to discover, as she did last month, that her husband and vice president of the US, Mr Dick Cheney, was an eighth cousin to senator and Democratic presidential Barack Obama.

Traditionally, people in Myanmar do not have surnames. Each child is given an individual name – varying in length from one word to three, four or even more words – whose elements are completely independent from his or her parents’ names.

So the children of U (Mr) Aung Kyaw and Daw (Ms/Mrs) May Thu might have names as diverse as San Aung, Kyaw Myo or Wai Yi.

However, during the colonial era some parents and institutions started adopting an informal surname system, which had been imported from Britain. Those who learned at missionary schools were usually given a Christian first name followed by their fathers’ names – the daughter of Aung Gyi might be named Rosie Aung Gyi, for example.

Although most families in the country stuck with the traditional naming system even through the colonial era, some parents have opted to include elements of their own names in their children’s names.

Yangon resident Myo Min Tun, a middle-aged graphic designer who works with a media company, was named in such a manner.

“My parents’ names are U Than Tun and Daw Aye Aye Myint,” he said. “My two brothers are called Khine Min Tun and Aye Min Tun. My father said he wanted his sons’ names to be similar to his.”

But Myo Min Tun said his name was not originally like this – an astrologer named him Myo Min Thein shortly after he was born, while one of his brothers was called Khine Min. “Tun” was added later by their father.

“My father wasn’t trying to copy foreign cultures. He just wanted all of his sons to share part of his name and his favourite word was ‘Tun’ (sunshine),” said Myo Min Tun.

He said he was not very fond of the idea of Myanmar women changing their names after marriage like women do in many other countries.

“In Myanmar, some words are not feminine and it would sound odd to brand a woman with a masculine name. If my father had a daughter, it would be difficult to name all his children in such a pattern,” he said.

Myo Min Tun said he also plans to give his children the name “Tun” one day, as the middle or latter part of their name, and would like the name to continue being passed down to the following generations.

Saw Nanda Syn, a 23-year-old Chinese-Myanmar woman, said all of her siblings have names that begin with “Saw” and end with “Syn”. She and her sisters have inherited “Syn” from their father’s name Saw Thant Syn, with “Saw” being a Myanmar version of Chinese family name “Shu”.

“Because the majority of my blood is Chinese, I’d like my children’s names to begin with ‘Saw’ if my future husband agrees,” she said. “I think it won’t be a serious matter for him and he might agree with me.”

Saw Nanda Syn said that one good thing about having a surname is that when she goes to a Chinese temple it is easier to make friends with people who share the same family name.

But she said she disliked the Chinese tradition of prohibiting marriage between families with the same surname and also loathed the system of women changing their names after marriage.

“I want to keep my own name. Changing it after marriage would be like losing my rights as a woman. This is one advantage of Myanmar’s system of not having a surname,” Saw Nanda Syn said.

Burmese names are given based on which day of the week one is born.

Win Maung, 59, said his name when he was younger was Win Maung Swe, while his brother was named Kyaw Win Swe and sister Win Yi Swe.

He said he dropped the “Swe” while attending university because he preferred having a shorter name.

“My parents’ names were U Kyaw Din and Daw Thein Nyunt. I don’t know why they added ‘Swe’ at the end of our names,” he said. “Unfortunately they’re both dead now so we can’t ask them about it.”

Win Maung said surnames had their advantages and disadvantages.

“With surnames it’s easier to know who your relations are or to trace your family tree. But if someone makes an inerasable mistake during his life, his children will inherit the bad name of their ancestor,” he said.

He said it would be difficult to institutionalise the use of surnames in Myanmar.

“There are many barriers to the use of surnames, such widespread belief in astrology and even the nature of our language. Surnames could make it hard to put your favourite word in your preferred position – front, middle or last,” Win Maung said.

He said the naming system in Myanmar is a time-honoured tradition that he would like to see maintained.

“The status quo is the best,” he said.