Brand Names in Chinese
How global brands translate their names for Chinese-speaking markets — with the phonetic, semantic, and cultural story behind each choice.
phonetic = sound-basedsemantic = meaning-basedmixed = both
Technology
Acer→宏碁Hóng qí
semanticAdobe→奥多比Ào duō bǐ
phoneticAirbnb→爱彼迎Ài bǐ yíng
mixedAlibaba→阿里巴巴Ā lǐ bā bā
phoneticAmazon→亚马逊Yà mǎ xùn
phoneticApple→苹果Píng guǒ
semanticASUS→华硕Huá shuò
semanticCisco→思科Sī kē
phoneticDell→戴尔Dài ěr
phoneticDropbox→DropboxD r o p b o x
phoneticFacebook→脸书Liǎn shū
semanticGoogle→谷歌Gǔ gē
phoneticHP→惠普Huì pǔ
mixedHuawei→华为Huá wèi
semanticIBM→国际商业机器Guó jì shāng yè jī qì
semanticInstagram→InstagramI n s t a g r a m
phoneticIntel→英特尔Yīng tè ěr
phoneticLenovo→联想Lián xiǎng
semanticLinkedIn→领英Lǐng yīng
mixedMeta→元Yuán
semanticMicrosoft→微软Wēi ruǎn
semanticNetflix→奈飞Nài fēi
phoneticNintendo→任天堂Rèn tiān táng
semanticNvidia→英伟达Yīng wěi dá
mixedOracle→甲骨文Jiǎ gǔ wén
semanticQualcomm→高通Gāo tōng
mixedSalesforce→赛富时Sài fù shí
mixedSamsung→三星Sān xīng
semanticSAP→思爱普Sī ài pǔ
phoneticSlack→SlackS l a c k
phoneticSony→索尼Suǒ ní
phoneticSpotify→声田Shēng tián
mixedTesla→特斯拉Tè sī lā
phoneticTikTok→抖音Dǒu yīn
semanticTwitter→推特Tuī tè
phoneticUber→优步Yōu bù
mixedWhatsApp→瓦次艾普Wǎ cì ài pǔ
phoneticXiaomi→小米Xiǎo mǐ
semanticYouTube→优兔Yōu tù
mixedZoom→ZoomZ o o m
phoneticFood & Beverage
7-Up→七喜Qī xǐ
semanticAbsolut→绝对伏特加Jué duì fú tè jiā
semanticBacardi→百加得Bǎi jiā dé
phoneticBudweiser→百威Bǎi wēi
phoneticBurger King→汉堡王Hàn bǎo wáng
semanticCoca-Cola→可口可乐Kě kǒu kě lè
mixedCorona→科罗娜Kē luó nà
phoneticDomino's→达美乐Dá měi lè
phoneticDove Chocolate→德芙Dé fú
phoneticEvian→依云Yī yún
phoneticFanta→芬达Fēn dá
phoneticFerrero Rocher→费列罗Fèi liè luó
phoneticGatorade→佳得乐Jiā dé lè
phoneticHaagen-Dazs→哈根达斯Hā gēn dá sī
phoneticHeineken→喜力Xǐ lì
mixedHeinz→亨氏Hēng shì
phoneticHershey's→好时Hǎo shí
mixedJack Daniel's→杰克丹尼Jié kè dān ní
phoneticJohnnie Walker→尊尼获加Zūn ní huò jiā
phoneticKellogg's→家乐氏Jiā lè shì
mixedKFC→肯德基Kěn dé jī
phoneticKitKat→奇巧Qí qiǎo
mixedLay's→乐事Lè shì
semanticM&M's→M&M'sM & M ' s
phoneticMagnum→梦龙Mèng lóng
mixedMars→玛氏Mǎ shì
phoneticMcDonald's→麦当劳Mài dāng láo
phoneticMilky Way→银河Yín hé
semanticMonster Energy→魔爪Mó zhǎo
semanticNescafé→雀巢咖啡Què cháo kā fēi
semanticNespresso→奈斯派索Nài sī pài suǒ
phoneticNestlé→雀巢Què cháo
semanticOreo→奥利奥Ào lì ào
phoneticPepsi→百事Bǎi shì
mixedPerrier→巴黎水Bā lí shuǐ
semanticPizza Hut→必胜客Bì shèng kè
mixedPringles→品客Pǐn kè
phoneticRed Bull→红牛Hóng niú
semanticShake Shack→摇滚汉堡Yáo gǔn hàn bǎo
semanticSkittles→彩虹糖Cǎi hóng táng
semanticSnickers→士力架Shì lì jià
phoneticSprite→雪碧Xuě bì
mixedStarbucks→星巴克Xīng bā kè
phoneticSubway→赛百味Sài bǎi wèi
phoneticToblerone→三角巧克力Sān jiǎo qiǎo kè lì
semanticTwix→特趣Tè qù
phoneticAutomotive
Acura→讴歌Ōu gē
mixedAlfa Romeo→阿尔法·罗密欧Ā ěr fǎ · luó mì ōu
phoneticAudi→奥迪Ào dí
phoneticBentley→宾利Bīn lì
phoneticBMW→宝马Bǎo mǎ
mixedCadillac→凯迪拉克Kǎi dí lā kè
phoneticChevrolet→雪佛兰Xuě fó lán
phoneticCitroën→雪铁龙Xuě tiě lóng
phoneticFerrari→法拉利Fǎ lā lì
phoneticFiat→菲亚特Fēi yà tè
phoneticFord→福特Fú tè
phoneticHonda→本田Běn tián
semanticHyundai→现代Xiàn dài
phoneticInfiniti→英菲尼迪Yīng fēi ní dí
phoneticJaguar→捷豹Jié bào
semanticJeep→吉普Jí pǔ
phoneticKia→起亚Qǐ yà
phoneticLamborghini→兰博基尼Lán bó jī ní
phoneticLand Rover→路虎Lù hǔ
semanticLexus→雷克萨斯Léi kè sà sī
phoneticMaserati→玛莎拉蒂Mǎ shā lā dì
phoneticMazda→马自达Mǎ zì dá
phoneticMercedes-Benz→奔驰Bēn chí
mixedMINI→迷你Mí nǐ
semanticMitsubishi→三菱Sān líng
semanticNissan→日产Rì chǎn
semanticPeugeot→标致Biāo zhì
semanticPorsche→保时捷Bǎo shí jié
phoneticRenault→雷诺Léi nuò
phoneticRolls-Royce→劳斯莱斯Láo sī lái sī
phoneticSubaru→斯巴鲁Sī bā lǔ
phoneticToyota→丰田Fēng tián
semanticVolkswagen→大众Dà zhòng
semanticVolvo→沃尔沃Wò ěr wò
phoneticFashion & Retail
Adidas→阿迪达斯Ā dí dá sī
phoneticCalvin Klein→卡尔文·克莱恩Kǎ ěr wén · kè lái ēn
phoneticGap→盖璞Gài pú
phoneticH&M→海恩斯莫里斯Hǎi ēn sī mò lǐ sī
phoneticLacoste→拉科斯特Lā kē sī tè
phoneticLevi's→李维斯Lǐ wéi sī
phoneticNike→耐克Nài kè
phoneticPrimark→普里马克Pǔ lǐ mǎ kè
phoneticRalph Lauren→拉夫·劳伦Lā fū · láo lún
phoneticTommy Hilfiger→汤米·希尔费格Tāng mǐ · xī ěr fèi gé
phoneticUniqlo→优衣库Yōu yī kù
mixedZara→飒拉Sà lā
phoneticLuxury
Balenciaga→巴黎世家Bā lí shì jiā
semanticBottega Veneta→葆蝶家Bǎo dié jiā
phoneticBulgari→宝格丽Bǎo gé lì
phoneticBurberry→博柏利Bó bǎi lì
phoneticCartier→卡地亚Kǎ dì yà
phoneticCéline→赛琳Sài lín
phoneticChanel→香奈儿Xiāng nài ér
phoneticCoach→蔻驰Kòu chí
phoneticDior→迪奥Dí ào
phoneticFendi→芬迪Fēn dí
phoneticGivenchy→纪梵希Jì fàn xī
phoneticGucci→古驰Gǔ chí
phoneticHermes→爱马仕Ài mǎ shì
mixedKate Spade→凯特丝蓓Kǎi tè sī bèi
phoneticLouis Vuitton→路易威登Lù yì wēi dēng
phoneticLVMH→路威酩轩Lù wēi mǐng xuān
phoneticMichael Kors→迈克高仕Mài kè gāo shì
mixedMontblanc→万宝龙Wàn bǎo lóng
mixedOmega→欧米茄Ōu mǐ qié
phoneticPrada→普拉达Pǔ lā dá
phoneticRolex→劳力士Láo lì shì
phoneticSaint Laurent→圣罗兰Shèng luó lán
phoneticSwarovski→施华洛世奇Shī huá luò shì qí
phoneticTiffany→蒂芙尼Dì fú ní
phoneticTiffany & Co→蒂芙尼Dì fú ní
phoneticValentino→华伦天奴Huá lún tiān nú
phoneticVersace→范思哲Fàn sī zhé
phoneticConsumer Electronics
Bose→博士Bó shì
phoneticCanon→佳能Jiā néng
mixedDyson→戴森Dài sēn
phoneticFujifilm→富士Fù shì
semanticGoPro→高普乐Gāo pǔ lè
phoneticHaier→海尔Hǎi ěr
phoneticHitachi→日立Rì lì
semanticLG→乐金Lè jīn
mixedNikon→尼康Ní kāng
phoneticPanasonic→松下Sōng xià
semanticPhilips→飞利浦Fēi lì pǔ
phoneticSharp→夏普Xià pǔ
phoneticToshiba→东芝Dōng zhī
semanticRetail
Consumer Goods
Pharmaceuticals
Finance
American Express→美国运通Měi guó yùn tōng
semanticBlackRock→贝莱德Bèi lái dé
phoneticCitibank→花旗银行Huā qí yín háng
semanticGoldman Sachs→高盛Gāo shèng
mixedHSBC→汇丰Huì fēng
semanticJPMorgan→摩根大通Mó gēn dà tōng
mixedKPMG→毕马威Bì mǎ wēi
phoneticMastercard→万事达Wàn shì dá
mixedPayPal→贝宝Bèi bǎo
phoneticStandard Chartered→渣打银行Zhā dǎ yín háng
phoneticUBS→瑞银Ruì yín
semanticVanguard→先锋Xiān fēng
semanticVisa→维萨Wéi sà
phoneticHospitality
Entertainment
Aviation & Industry
Toys
Industrial
Aviation
Air France→法国航空Fǎ guó háng kōng
semanticANA→全日空Quán rì kōng
semanticBritish Airways→英国航空Yīng guó háng kōng
semanticDelta Air Lines→达美航空Dá měi háng kōng
mixedEmirates→阿联酋航空Ā lián qiú háng kōng
semanticJapan Airlines→日本航空Rì běn háng kōng
semanticKorean Air→大韩航空Dà hán háng kōng
semanticLufthansa→汉莎航空Hàn shā háng kōng
mixedUnited Airlines→美国联合航空Měi guó lián hé háng kōng
semanticLuxury Watches
Media
Spirits
Beauty
Sportswear
Columbia Sportswear→哥伦比亚Gē lún bǐ yà
semanticConverse→匡威Kuāng wēi
phoneticLululemon→露露柠檬Lù lù níng méng
phoneticNew Balance→新百伦Xīn bǎi lún
mixedPatagonia→巴塔哥尼亚Bā tǎ gē ní yà
phoneticPuma→彪马Biāo mǎ
semanticReebok→锐步Ruì bù
mixedThe North Face→北面Běi miàn
semanticUnder Armour→安德玛Ān dé mǎ
phoneticVans→范斯Fàn sī
phoneticTelecommunications
About Chinese Brand Names
Why do global brands have Chinese names?
Chinese consumers prefer brands with local names they can pronounce and remember. A well-chosen Chinese name can convey the brand's values and create positive associations, while a poor translation can harm brand perception.
What are the main strategies for translating brand names into Chinese?
There are three main approaches: phonetic (音译, yīnyì) — approximating the original sound using Chinese characters; semantic (意译, yìyì) — translating the meaning; and mixed, which combines both. The best translations achieve all three: sound, meaning, and positive associations.
What is considered the best brand translation into Chinese?
Coca-Cola's 可口可乐 (Kě kǒu kě lè, "delicious and enjoyable") is widely cited as the gold standard — it sounds like the original and has a perfect meaning for a beverage brand. BMW's 宝马 ("precious horse") and Marriott's 万豪 ("myriad excellence") are also praised for their auspicious meanings.
Do all global brands have official Chinese names?
Most major global brands operating in Chinese markets establish an official Chinese name. Some brands (like H&M or 3M) primarily use their original names or abbreviations in Chinese markets. The Chinese name is typically registered as a trademark.