Gendered and Gender-Neutral Naming Practices in Mandarin Chinese: Metaphoric and Non-Metaphoric Imagery Over Time in Taiwan.

This study analyzes gender-specific and gender-neutral naming practices in Mandarin Chinese within Taiwan, using population-wide data from 2018 and historical records spanning the past century. It finds that boys' names exhibit greater diversity in characters and semantic categories, reflecting traditional societal expectations for men's public roles and achievements, while girls' names emphasize appearance, virtues, and metaphoric elements such as plants and precious stones. Over time, naming patterns show a decrease in gender stereotyping, with more varied traits appearing in girls' names and a shift away from strongly gendered metaphors like "dragon" or "phoenix." Gender-neutral names tend to avoid strongly gendered characters, often incorporating functional words or terms associated with equality, and align more closely with masculine-associated traits, suggesting cultural preferences that favor masculine-coded names for both genders. The findings highlight how naming conventions mirror evolving gender norms and social values in Taiwanese society.