"I think that the matter of names is entirely up to the individual." - Steve
Kind of like the singer Christina Aguilera the record lable told her to change her last name and she told them she wasn't going to do it.

@rompop
I wonder what Chinese tend to take as an English version since there has been no intersections? Somewhat having a close meaning/sounding?

I am in China right now and I think for both Chinese and foreign people it just depends on the person what name they use. Many Chinese people have an English name, but there are also some who don't and only use their Chinese name. With foreigners it is the same, some have a chinese name as well (mostly people who intend to stay here longer/ have chinese friends), others only use their own name and few change the name to something close to their own name.

My name is very hard to pronounce, even in my own country I have to introduce myself several times and it is always spelled wrong. China is my third time abroad for a longer time. When I arrive I use my own name and see how that goes. In the US and France my friends came up with nicknames, some random nicknames, some sound like my real name. Sometimes I use a different name (middle name or first two initials of my name), just makes it easier.

@eugrus

It seems most often the English names Chinese use are just chosen, or perhaps given, and have nothing to do with their Chinese names. Sometimes, though, they choose names that are close in pronunciation to their Chinese names (as close as it can be, anyway), and I've even seen them create names that just sound close to their Chinese names but aren't actually real English names at all. This can make for some odd sounding names, but I think it's a neat idea to make up your own unique name.