Dragon Lady

Kelly Long Nv

When I first came to China to teach, I asked my students to give me a Chinese name and they said they would think abut it.  After all, they had Western names so I wanted an Eastern name. But after two weeks, no one had any suggestions.  So I approached the topic again. I told them that I wanted a name that had the world "Dragon" in it since it is the Year of the Dragon (2012).  They didn't like the idea but the idea really grew on me.  I suggested that they call me "Dragon Lady" and that suggestion met with great horror.  In their opinion, it was too harsh, too unfeminine, too impolite. A dragon lady is viewed as undesirable.

 "Dragon Girl" was offered as a compromise, it was not as straight-forward or bold.  But I insisted that they translate Dragon Lady for me.  They protested and reluctantly translated my new name (Long Nv).  At first, none of them would address me as Long Nv but eventually, several of them told me, "That name fits you."