MULAN in the name: Causes and consequences of gendered Chinese names

Drawing on data from the 2005 China mini-census, this study aims to measure the genderedness of Chinese names and explore the determinants of gendered names and their impacts on labor market performance. The Gendered Name Index we constructed shows that male and female names have been converging over the past century, mainly attributed to the defeminization of female names. A regression analysis reveals that the gender characteristics of Chinese names are highly correlated with parental characteristics, the strength of kinship networks, and local socioeconomic conditions. Additionally, the genderedness of a name has mild but statistically significant effects on labor market performance. Notably, a masculine name will increase men's earnings, while a feminine name will prevent women from entering the labor market and reduce their earnings. These findings support both gender identity and gender discrimination mechanisms. •Gendered Name Index is constructed to measure the genderedness of Chinese names.•The Gendered Name Index (GNI) of men and women have been converging.•GNI correlates with characteristics of parents, kinship networks, and regions.•Feminine names bring negative effect for women in the labor market.•Masculine names bring positive effect for men in the labor market.