For many East Asians living in Western societies, the first challenge they face is their own name—mispronounced in classrooms, simplified in workplaces, or changed altogether to fit in. Behind these small acts lie deeper questions of identity, belonging, and cultural respect. How do naming traditions shaped by centuries of history meet the bureaucracies and biases of today’s West? And what does genuine respect look like in a globalised world—merely saying a name right, or something more? Professor Ikuko Nakane and Dr Lewis Mayo, both from the Asia Institute, join host Sami Shah to examine the question of what it means to negotiate anglophone societies with an East Asian name.
An Asia Institute podcast. Produced and edited by profactual.com. Music by audionautix.com. Transcript forthcoming.