Chinese Boy Names
Chinese male given names derive from Chinese characters, primarily in Mandarin. Given names are usually one or two characters, with no grammatical gender. Male names often favor characters denoting strength, virtue, ability, or success, and some families assign a shared generational character to sons within the same generation. The surname precedes the given name in standard order.
In modern use, two-character given names are most common. Mainland China writes and romanizes them with Hanyu Pinyin, while older diaspora records may show hyphenated spellings. Examples on this page include Dewei, Jun, Bowei, Baoyu, Dongsheng, Enlai, Bohan, Changyu, Bingwen, and Deng.
Showing 50
of 326 names
| Name | Meaning | Origins | Gender | Popularity (last 10y) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tao | Way; pottery; waves; peach | Chinese, Vietnamese | Boy | 1,845 #1 | |
| Cai | Multiple origins: linked to the Latin name Caius/Gaius (historically associated with 'rejoice'); as Chinese 蔡 (Cài) it is a surname from an ancient state rather than a lexical meaning. | Chinese, Latin, Welsh | Boy | 975 #2 | |
| Luan | Albanian: "lion"; Vietnamese (Luân/Luận): related to "discussion/theory" or a syllabic given name; Portuguese/Brazilian: modern given name usage (often influenced by other traditions); Chinese: surname meanings depend on the character (e.g., 栾, 鸾). | Albanian, Brazilian, Chinese, Portuguese, Vietnamese | Boy | 710 #3 | |
| Tai | Great, extreme | Chinese | Boy | 615 #4 | |
| An | Peace; safety; sky | Chinese, Sumerian, Vietnamese | Boy | 549 #5 | |
| Kam | Varies by origin - commonly a short form whose meanings include 'sweet' or 'gold' (Chinese), 'perfection' (from Kamal), or 'work' (Indic root). | Arabic, Cantonese, Chinese, English, Punjabi, Scottish | Boy | 447 #6 | |
| Rui | Portuguese: short form of Rodrigo/Roderick meaning 'famous ruler'. Japanese: meaning varies by kanji. Chinese: meaning depends on character (e.g., 瑞 'auspicious'). | Chinese, Galician, Germanic, Japanese, Portuguese | Boy | 377 #7 | |
| Minh | Bright; clear | Chinese, Vietnamese | Boy | 365 #8 | |
| Han | Varies by origin - Chinese/Korean: linked to the Han clan or Han (漢) as an ethnic/historical term; Western: short form of Johannes/Hans meaning 'God is gracious'. | Chinese, Dutch, English, German, Korean, Scandinavian | Boy | 351 #9 | |
| Jian | Varies by Chinese character: 建 'establish/build'; 健 'healthy/strong'; 剑/劍 'sword'; 简/簡 'simple/brief'. | Chinese | Boy | 229 #10 | |
| Yi | Righteousness; propriety | Chinese | Boy | 215 #11 | |
| Deng | {'Dinka': 'rain', 'Chinese': 'surname originating from an ancient place/fief (no single-word modern meaning)'} | Chinese | Boy | 140 #12 | |
| Mang | Awn; grain bristle | Chinese | Boy | 138 #13 | |
| Yian | If deriving from Ian/Ioannis: "God is gracious." If Chinese (Yi'an): meaning varies with the characters (e.g., combinations can mean concepts like "righteous peace" or "joyful peace"). | Chinese, English, Greek, Scottish | Boy | 118 #14 | |
| Shun | Fast; talented | Chinese, Japanese | Boy | 116 #15 | |
| Man | Meaning varies by origin: from Sanskrit root meaning 'mind/heart'; from Chinese characters with senses such as 'literature/culture' (文), 'ten thousand' (万) or 'full/satisfied' (满); also used as a short form of names like Manuel. | Cantonese, Chinese, English, Sanskrit, Vietnamese | Boy | 100 #16 | |
| Long | Dragon | Chinese, English, Vietnamese | Boy | 91 #17 | |
| Ruan | From Irish 'Rúan' meaning 'little red one' or 'red-haired'; also appears as the Chinese surname 阮 (distinct origin). | Brazilian, Chinese, Irish, Portuguese | Boy | 72 #18 | |
| Youn | Govern; overseer | Chinese, Korean | Boy | 64 #19 | |
| Yao | Born Thursday; precious jade | Akan, Baoulé, Chinese, Ewe | Boy | 60 #20 | |
| Jiho | Vast wisdom | Chinese, Korean | Boy | 55 #21 | |
| Bohan | Typically from Chinese characters meaning 'broad/learned' (博) + 'contain/cultured' or 'literary' (涵/翰) - generally 'broad and cultured' or 'learned and encompassing'. | Chinese | Boy | 46 #22 | |
| Hao | Depends on the Chinese character: 好 (hǎo) 'good; to like'; 浩 (hào) 'vast; grand'; 皓 (hào) 'bright; white'; 昊 (hào) 'vast sky'. Generally positive meanings like good, vast, bright. | Chinese | Boy | 41 #23 | |
| Lang | Varies by origin - Chinese (郎 Láng): 'young man; gentleman; official; groom'; Germanic/Old English/Scandinavian: 'long, tall'. | Chinese, English, Germanic, Scandinavian | Boy | 38 #24 | |
| Dawan | Varies by origin: Chinese ofter "big bay"; in English/American usage it's typically a modern/created name without a single traditional meaning. | Chinese, English, Indonesian | Boy | 31 #25 | |
| Zhi | Will; wisdom | Chinese | Boy | 31 #26 | |
| Shen | Spirit; tooth | Chinese, Hebrew | Boy | 27 #27 | |
| Bolin | Wave forest | Chinese | Boy | 25 #28 | |
| Dao | Star; way; peach | Chinese, Lao, Thai, Vietnamese | Boy | 23 #29 | |
| Yang | Sunny side; light | Chinese | Boy | 23 #30 | |
| Xuan | Spring; fine jade; gracious | Asturian, Chinese, Hebrew, Vietnamese | Boy | 19 #31 | |
| Jaemin | Talented and quick-witted | Chinese, Korean | Boy | 17 #32 | |
| Hoan | Joy, rejoicing | Chinese, Vietnamese | Boy | 14 #33 | |
| Wei | Great; power; fern | Chinese | Boy | 8 #34 | |
| Dong | Vietnamese: 'Đông' = 'east' or 'winter'. Chinese surname 董 (Dǒng): originally 'to supervise/oversee' (used as a family name). Korean: often from hanja 東 meaning 'east' (meaning varies by hanja). | Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese | Boy | 6 #35 | |
| Ku | Hawaiian: name of a major god (often associated with war and prosperity). Chinese: represents several surnames/characters (e.g., 苦 'bitter'; 顧 'to look after'). Korean/Japanese: a syllable/romanization whose meaning depends on the hanja/kanji used. | Chinese, Hawaiian, Japanese, Korean | Boy | 6 #36 | |
| Liang | Depends on the character: 良 'good, virtuous'; 梁 'beam, bridge' (common surname); 亮 'bright' | Chinese | Boy | 6 #37 | |
| Dashan | Big mountain | Chinese | Boy | 5 #38 | |
| Heng | Constant, persistent; lucky | Chinese, Khmer | Boy | 5 #39 | |
| Xiang | Soar; auspicious; fragrant | Chinese | Boy | 5 #40 | |
| Ayi | Mandarin Āyí (阿姨): 'aunt' or respectful term for an older woman. In Ghanaian contexts Ayi is used as a personal name/surname; specific traditional meaning varies by ethnic group. | Chinese | Boy | — | |
| Baekhyun | Chief and wise | Chinese, Korean | Boy | — | |
| Ban | Varies by origin: Japanese kanji can mean 'ten thousand' (万), 'companion' (伴), or 'guard/turn' (番); Chinese surname 班 conveys 'group' or 'class'; Gaelic/Irish bán means 'white, fair'. | Chinese, Gaelic, Irish, Japanese, Vietnamese | Boy | — | |
| Baoliang | Depends on characters; commonly interpreted as 'precious + good/virtuous' (e.g., 宝良) or 'protect + good' (e.g., 保良). | Chinese | Boy | — | |
| Baolin | Combines 'bao' (宝: precious/treasure or 保: protect) + 'lin' (林: forest/grove); commonly interpreted as 'precious forest' or 'protect the forest'. | Chinese | Boy | — | |
| Baosheng | Depends on characters; commonly "protect life" (保生) or "precious life" (宝生). | Chinese | Boy | — | |
| Baoyu | Treasured/precious jade | Chinese | Boy | — | |
| Beopheung | Dharma flourishing | Chinese, Korean | Boy | — | |
| Biao | Typically 'distinguished; brave; outstanding' - commonly written as 彪 (biāo). | Chinese | Boy | — | |
| Bingwen | Commonly '炳' (bǐng) = bright/illustrious + '文' (wén) = literature/culture - 'bright and cultured' or 'illustrious scholar'. | Chinese | Boy | — |
Chinese Boys name popularity over time
Aggregated births across United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany for every Chinese-origin name in our dataset.
326
Names in this origin
2
With data in 2025
0
Births 2025
6,616
Peak year 0