Ni hao! 你好！
Official system of People’s Republic of China
Internationally accepted
Chart, Spence, pp. xxxi-xxxiii
Tricky letters
"c"= "ts" (cun)
"q"= "ch"
(qian)
"x"= "sh"
(xin)
"zh"= "j"
(zhan)
"i" =
Pronounced like "r" after "ch," "zh," and "r"
Pronounced like "u" after "z," "c," and "s"
Pronounced like "ee" after "j," "q," "x" and all others
Ma
1st tone: mā = mother 媽 /妈
2nd tone: má = What? 嗎/吗
3rd tone: mǎ = horse 馬 /马
4th tone: mà = curse 罵 /骂
Surname first
Skaff Jonathan
Wife keeps surname after marriage
Single character surname (most common)
Zhu Yuanzhang
Mao Zedong
Double character surname (rare)
Sima Xiangru
Single character given name (now popular)
Wang Hong
Yang Ying