“Driving around the city, you can tour several world-famous attractions in a day—Cannes Town, Arc de Triomphe, Venice...” said Li Yi, a resident of Changchun, Jilin Province, noting that the names of new residential projects in China are becoming increasingly “foreign.”

　　In response to the current problem of non-standard names such as “foreign names” and “foreign-language names” used for new residential projects, residential areas, and structures and buildings of geographical significance, Changchun will implement the newly revised “Changchun Geographical Naming Management Regulations” starting June 1. The regulations stipulate that henceforth, places shall not be named after foreign personal names or foreign place names, which means new residential projects will not be allowed to use “foreign names.”

　　In fact, according to the “Implementation Rules for the Regulations on the Management of Geographical Names” issued by China's Ministry of Civil Affairs, it has long been stipulated that Chinese place names shall not be named after foreign personal names or place names.

　　This time, Changchun's “Changchun Geographical Naming Management Regulations” imposes stricter rules on the phenomenon of new residential projects favoring “foreign names”: the names of residential areas and structures and buildings of geographical significance shall be applied for by the development and construction unit to the civil affairs department for naming before handling the construction project approval. Names not approved cannot be used as standard place names in project approval, property registration, or household registration; cannot be used as landmark indication names; and cannot be used on maps.

　　Previously, many places in China have strictly restricted the use of “foreign names” for new residential projects. In 2008, Dongguan City, Guangdong Province, issued the “Dongguan City Geographical Naming Master Plan,” which required residential and commercial-residential projects to prohibit the use of “foreign names”; Jinan City, Shandong Province, implemented the “Jinan City Geographical Naming Management Measures,” which also clearly stated that generally, personal names, foreign place names, and words transliterated from foreign vocabulary shall not be used as place names.

　　Some scholars believe that with the gradual standardization of place names across various regions, the proliferation of “foreign names” for new residential projects may be significantly reduced.

　　“Existing ‘foreign-named’ communities have used these names as place names for many years, and people's household registration books and ID cards already bear these names. Changing them would incur significant social costs,” said Chang Jiang, Director of the Division of Administrative Division and Geographical Naming of the Changchun Civil Affairs Bureau. “We will conduct a general survey of these ‘foreign-named’ communities in accordance with the new regulations, report them to the relevant departments, and handle them as appropriate.”