What is my "native" language?

[Up and Away 10]

Hello,

I am a Canadian citizen filing a G-325. I was born in China and my first language was Chinese, but I have been in Canada since I was six years old. English is my primary language.

At the bottom of the G-325, it says that if my "native" language does not have a roman alphabet, that I should write my name in my native language there. My question is --do I have to write my Chinese name in Chinese there? I'll gladly do it --I just don't want to make a mistake and fill something out that, in my case, should stay blank.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

[Bobby+Umit 161]

You can't go wrong doing that - either way.

[Soapz 14]

I would think that you can just use English. You've been the first 6 years of your life in China, nobody expects you to still remember any of that, considering how 'difficult' Chinese is. Pick the language you're most comfortable in, and if that is English go for it.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

If your name is Chinese then you should probably provide the Chinese script for it. English transliterations of foreign names can vary dramatically, and make some types of background checks much more difficult. If your name is English then don't try to translate it into Chinese - again, for the same reason. Important characteristics are often lost in the translation. For example, my name translated into Mandarin and back to English comes out something like "Jim Moo".

[Bobby+Umit 161]

If your name is Chinese then you should probably provide the Chinese script for it. English transliterations of foreign names can vary dramatically, and make some types of background checks much more difficult. If your name is English then don't try to translate it into Chinese - again, for the same reason. Important characteristics are often lost in the translation. For example, my name translated into Mandarin and back to English comes out something like "Jim Moo".

Jim Moo? that sounds right