Originally Posted by
MSPeconomist
IME when Chinese people living in the USA pick English first names, they often try to keep the same first letter as their Chinese name written in the English alphabet, although sometimes the given and family names get mixed up. Some translate their name from Chinese characters to an English word and others pick a name they like, perhaps something that they think sounds very impressive in English, resulting in some pretentious and very British sounding first names.
My father gave my wife (girlfriend then) her American name--first letter matches.
The impetus can be getting annoyed with others stumbling on their Chinese name or wanting to make it easier for Americans to call them by a given name. Sometimes there might be the sense that too many Chinese people have the same name in English. Yet this is a great opportunity to pick a name with useful connotations professionally or even to establish a brand for themselves.
Her biggest issue was with people mangling it sufficiently that neither of us recognized it. It's a nuisance when you're in a waiting room and don't realize you have been called.
Still, it would be wise to check the connotations of the name in American/British English. Professional women (or graduate students hoping to become such) should obviously avoid names that sound sexy or worse, like Candy, Blaze, Gigi, Katya, etc.
What's the problem with Katya?