What's in a name? A lot it turns out. In Tommie Chen's case culture, history, and custom all played a part. David Agahchen, Tommie's son, tells us the rest of the story.
My father's birth name was Tomi (pronounced 'TOH-mee'), a Japanese name that means abundance. He was given this name to symbolize hope and resilience for a young family surrounded by war-torn poverty and uncertainty.
During the five decades of Taiwan occupation, the ruling Japanese government mandated that all families give their children Japanese names to maintain control over the people.
My father's sister was named Telu (pronounced 'TEH-loo'), which means light. She was named to illuminate a world shrouded in darkness. And just as Telu was a guiding light, my father was named Tomi - a symbol of abundance amid challenging circumstances.
When the Japanese occupation in Taiwan came to an end, the Chinese government sought to reverse its influence. As part of this effort, they mandated that all families change their names to Chinese. The Japanese name 'Tomi,' written in 'kanji' characters, is pronounced as 'Fu' in Chinese Mandarin. Since it was customary to have two given names in Chinese at the time, his parents decided to add 'One' to his name. With that addition, when he was just four years old, his name changed from 'Abundance' to 'The Abundant One.' Fu-Yi.
Throughout his life, Dad's parents and family members continued to call him Tomi, embracing the name that had been a part of his identity from the beginning. After moving to North America, he adopted the Anglicized spelling 'Tommie' (pronounced "TOM-mee"), not only to keep a connection to his birth name but also to make it memorable and pronounceable for friends and business contacts.
Like all proud parents, his mom and dad took great effort and thought to raise their kids, starting with the names they gave them: light and abundance.
