This is how you tell someone has spent their time reading books. They know a lot of words and names from all around the world and history but pronounce everything wrong.
Meme aside, it’s not that big a deal. East Asia gets a very mixed representation in western media, but it’s still better than the (effectively) no representation that is typical of SEA (bar like one or two countries).
Inclusion of things like the Keris and races like the Wayang are like a huge breath of fresh air, especially when “Eastern” typically manifests as one of three countries.
I’m holding out hope that a fantasy setting does an interpretation of a toyol or pontianak though.
everyone knows it’s pronounced /tian/ /xia/ (see IPA for instructions on pronounciation)
How would it be pronounced proper?
Yeap
The best way to describe it (imo) is: Tea-yen Sh-yea
I’ve heard variations in pronunciations for the pinyin “x” though. I personally pronounce it without an emphasis on the h (s-yea), which I believe is fairly typical for Malaysian Mandarin speakers.
Old buddy of mine with that name pronounced it Tea N, not sure the last name.
The last name is probably similar to “cha” or maybe “chia”
I know “Xin” is pronounced like “chin”
I think “Tian” kinda rhymes with “peon” but faster and “Xia” is like saying “sha” but buzz it like you’re making a Z sound.
