How would you like everybody to call you Big Mountain?

How would you like to be named "Big Mountain"?

The name - Da Shan in Chinese - has a bit of macho flair, after all. It also happens to be the Chinese name of Mark Rowswell, a Canadian well-known as a talk show star on Chinese TV. His Chinese is so good that it is often considered the gold standard for the ability of laowai (foreigners) to speak Mandarin.

But choosing Da Shan for yourself might be problematic, and that goes to the heart of the dilemma foreigners face when choosing a Chinese name.