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• We discuss whether Chinese given names can be identified as female or male. • The role of specific written Chinese characters in gender identification is discussed. • Gender identification is subject to vocalic sound symbolism. • Reduplication plays a role in gender identification. • We test native speakers' ability to guess gender in different conditions. In this paper we discuss a number of factors that bear on the question if a Chinese given name is more likely to refer to a female or a male. In some cases this can be determined (with some degree of confidence) – in others it cannot. We identify the relevant factors as 1) gender-identifying characters or radicals; 2) sound symbolism and 3) reduplication. We consider the relations between these factors, and test our predictions in a psycholinguistic experiment with native speakers, for both written and spoken Chinese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]