From Chau Chung Yum to Joe Yow

The Chinese names are translated into English alphabets in a process call romanisation.  Typically an English name is given to a migrant at the point of entry (possibly by the immigration official, based on the verbal pronunciation of the name).  As there are some difference in dialect pronunciation of the name, and the leak of standard across romanisation, there are significant differences between Romanisation of names across the world.

周 (Chau) 振任 (Chung Yum) has an Adult formal name -周 (Chau) 有運 (Yow Won).  He would be introducing himself as Chau Yow Won in the process of migration into Australia.   His immigration papers recorded him as Joe Yow. Here is the explanation.

Surname – Joe 

Surname Joe, is a Romanisation of 周 used in early colonial Australia.

The British Hong Kong government romanisation of surname is Chau.   It is sometimes this is also translated as Chau.

The Cantonese pronunciation (in Jyutoing) is Zau1.

The Pinyin pronunciation is Zhou1.

.Full name – Yow

This is the translation of Chau Chung Yum’s Adult formal name 有運 (Yow Won).   It took the first character 有,  as the first name.

His peers in Australia called him Uncle Yow (有伯 – Yow Bak)