"To JK Rowling, from Cho Chang"

[ravenstar84]

Click to view

I am going to spread this video like fiendfyre. Everything said in this poem sums up all the feelings I've had towards Cho Chang for the past decade that I couldn't/was too lazy to put into words. I almost got teary eyed at the end.

Comments

[bitchet]

I guess the only thing I wonder is - is Cho Chang stated to be Chinese in the books? I don't remember. Did the producers just have a Chinese actress play her because, "eh, close enough?" That doesn't explain why she has two last names or why, of the two Asians ever mentioned, they're both in Ravenclaw. But I do wonder if maybe she's not supposed to be Korean.

[inverarity]

That's what I was wondering. I have always known "Cho Chang" is not an authentic name in any Asian culture I'm aware of, but I don't think Rowling ever specifically mentioned her ethnicity. That she is Chinese seems to be a fanon assumption.

[ravenstar84]

I had a discussion about this today with someone who is Cantonese and is pretty familiar with Chinese names, and also from few replies from Chinese posters on tumblr. Cho and Chang, even as a first and last name, can be a Chinese name.

But as I said to bitchet, I know where the poet is coming from. The only East Asian character in the books just has to be given "typically" sounding East Asian names.

[ravenstar84]

Also (and I admit my knowledge is somewhat limited, so bear with me), part of the problem is the way Chinese names are translated to English. For example, Chen, Chan, and Zhen are actually same name. They root from the same Chinese character, but are pronounced differently in different Chinese dialects. So it all depends on who translated the name from which dialect. And the way it's spelled in English isn't even accurate to the way it's supposed to be said in Chinese. I'm not that familiar with Korean, but my guess its a similar process as my own Burmese last name went through the same ordeal.

So Cho Chang may sound weird to us, but we're not even seeing it the way it's supposed to sound like, and chances are we've seen other variations of the name in English already.

[ravenstar84]

I don't know where Rachel Rostad got her being Chinese from (maybe it's from Katie Leung being Chinese). But yea, Cho's ethnicity was never stated in the books, which is something that always bothered me a bit.

Also, and this has been stated and argued all over tumblr, Cho and Chang can be both a first and last name, and both are of Chinese and Korean origin. But I get where Rostad is coming from, that two "typically" sounding East Asian names were given to the only East Asian character.