This study examines naming practices in Vietnamese and Chinese cultures through a comparative analysis of 10,022 contemporary names (5,004 Vietnamese and 5,018 Chinese) collected from institutions and universities. By applying the mixed-methods analysis, we aim to identify the structural patterns, differences by gender, and variations by region in the naming conventions and take socio-cultural factors into account. The findings indicate significant differences in the culture’s perspective of tradition and modernity between the two cultures. The Vietnamese names are more traditional in their structure as 71.7% of the names had a three-component structure, and the middle names helped in distinguishing between the genders. The Chinese names are more flexible in their structure, and there is no clear distinction in gender. Regional analysis indicated a significant north-south gradient in traditional structure adherence (North Vietnam: 78.3%, South Vietnam: 65.2%; East China: 71.5%, South China: 58.9%) and pronounced urban-rural differences in naming complexity (15.3% difference in Vietnam, 12.7% in China). The results of statistical analysis show that there is a strong association between cultural background and name structure (χ2 = 876.43, p < 0.001), and specifically with the gender marking patterns (Vietnamese: β = 0.847, p < 0.001; Chinese: β = 0.124, p = 0.286). The findings have implications for onomastics as they show how naming practices can be used as cultural resources to maintain and transform social identities. The findings also offer practical applications for those working in cross-cultural communication and documentation as well as for understanding the evolution of naming practices in response to modernization.
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