What's in a Name?
My Chinese name is 瞿贵桂. It was given to me by the orphanage, Quzhou Social Welfare Institute, that I grew up in for my first two years of my life. The general meaning of my first name, Guigui, means “precious tree”. My last name, Qu, is based on the province I was adopted out of. So, similar to generational names, if i meet another adoptee with the same last name as me it typically means that we were adopted out of the same orphanage or region.
My English name, Jean, was given because my parents just liked the name. My sister’s AND my mom’s middle names are Jean!
Hello! My name is Jean Elliott (瞿贵桂). You may notice that my Chinese name and English name are not the same. This is because I was adopted from China. Legally, I go by my English name, but I keep my Chinese name with me to maintain my connection to my heritage.
I graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in Product/Industrial Design and I am happily employed as a Product Development Associate at a skincare company.
When I’m not working you can find me kicking a soccer ball around, trying to find the best boba in town, or working in my sewing room between piles of fabric stacked up to my ears! I made my dress for my wedding back in August of 2021 and I launched my own clothing brand about a year ago.
I joined Miss Chinese Chicago to become more involved in the community and to get to know more people since I’ve only lived in Chicago since September. I also, maybe selfishly, joined so I could connect to other powerful Chinese women. Growing up, Asian characters in mainstream media were typically relegated to nerdy, mean, or minor roles. The recent push in the past few years to center Asian characters and voices in a meaningful way has been a heartwarming and necessary change of pace. A dream of mine is to become one of those strong Chinese women that I didn’t have when I was little, and I believe joining MCC is a step in the right direction!
I’m so excited to continue to get to know the other women in this program and hope you’re just as excited to go on this adventure with all of us!