Naming Practices and Identity Formation in Multicultural Contexts

Naming practices lie at the intersection of language, culture and individual self‐understanding, serving both as markers of heritage and as instruments of social navigation. In multicultural settings, personal names may be adopted, adapted or rejected in response to linguistic challenges, perceived social advantage or the desire to signal belonging. Such choices are embedded in wider structures of power, ranging from colonial legacies to contemporary educational and professional hierarchies. Theoretical perspectives draw on socio-onomastics, viewing names not merely as labels but as performative acts that co-construct identities. Empirical studies reveal that the introduction of a foreign or secondary name can facilitate intercultural communication, but may also entail tensions concerning authenticity and agency. In children’s literature and educational contexts, narratives of “damage and desire” illustrate how positive affirmations or negative experiences linked to names influence self-esteem and cultural pride. Across diasporic communities, the negotiation of multiple naming repertoires reflects broader processes of acculturation, resistance and hybridisation. From HR practices in global organisations to digital platforms that require standardised identifiers, the politics of naming remains central to debates on inclusion, representation and human rights. Future research is poised to examine how algorithmic systems and online profiles interact with traditional naming customs to shape evolving identities.

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Naming Practices and Identity Formation in Multicultural Contexts publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in naming practices and identity formation in multicultural contexts across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Anthroponymy: the scholarly study of personal names and naming conventions.

Socio-onomastics: the investigation of names within their social, cultural and pragmatic contexts.

Translanguaging: the fluid employment of multiple linguistic codes in communication and identity work.

Identity negotiation: the dynamic process by which individuals present, adapt and align their self‐representations in interaction.

References

1. Stories of names: exploring Chinese high school language-other-than-English learners’ foreign name(s) usage and its role in multilingual identity construction. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development (2023).
2. "My Name Is...": Picturebooks Exploring Linguistically and Culturally Diverse Names. Names (2022).
3. Adopting French Names as Identity Markers among Second Foreign Language (L3) Learners in China. Names (2023).
4. The Adoption of non-Chinese Names as Identity Markers of Chinese International Students in Japan: A Case Study at a Japanese Comprehensive Research University. Names (2021).