Are Burmese people famous before or after their surnames?
People who are familiar with Myanmar will find an interesting phenomenon. For example, the first prime minister of Myanmar government, former prime minister of Myanmar and former UN Secretary-General Wu Dan all have Wu surname. Is this a coincidence? I didn't know what was going on until I got to Myanmar.
It turns out that Burmese names don't have the function of inheriting family symbols, and Burmese people don't have surnames!
A friend of mine in Myanmar said: "Wu is not Myanmar's surname, but Myanmar's respectful name for male elders."
Myanmar men often put a word "appearance" before their names to show their modesty when introducing themselves to others before they reach adulthood. Sometimes, in order to show closeness, elders will add the word "looks" before their names when addressing their younger men. When people address their peers or young people, they will add the word "brother" before their names. For example, a couple in Myanmar named their son Kyaw Win. When Kyaw Win was a minor, people called him "Mao", and when he was an adult, people called him "Ge". When he is old or has a certain social status, people will respectfully call him "Wu Juewen".
Like men, the appellation of Myanmar women changes with age.
When addressing a young or peer woman, the word "mom" is usually added before her name. Horse means "girl". In order to show self-modesty, young women usually add the word "horse" before their names when reporting themselves. If you address an elderly woman, people should put "du" before her name to show respect.
The honorific words and modesty of Burmese can distinguish people's gender and age.
Although there is no surname, Burmese people attach great importance to naming their children. From the seventh day to the fourteenth day after the birth of a child, parents should choose a good day to hold a grand naming ceremony for the child. At the naming ceremony, parents washed their children's hair with water boiled from locust vine leaves and big jaguar leaves. Then, change the children into clean new clothes and spray some perfume. Then, the elders who presided over the naming ceremony named the child according to the time and date of birth.
Interestingly, Burmese names are generally related to the week. According to Myanmar customs, every day of the week has a corresponding Burmese alphabet. When parents name their children, they usually put the letters corresponding to the day of birth above the name and the letters corresponding to the fifth day after birth below the name. Therefore, as long as you know the name of the Burmese, you can guess when he was born.