LHASA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- With the old generation of Tibetan nobles passing away, the traditional family names indicating their noble identities have been fading out.

    More civilians are personalizing their names to avoid using the same names as others, since for generations, Tibetans have used only a few words as names.

    In the first half of the 20th century, Tibet was still a feudal-serf society in which names marked social status.

    At that time, only the nobles or living Buddhas, about five percent of the Tibetan population, had family names, while Tibetan civilians could only share common names.

    Traditional family names in Tibet indicated social status. Ngapoi and Lhalu are both family names and manor titles. Pagbalha and Comoinling are both family names and titles for living Buddhas, said Basang Wangdu, director of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Academy of Social Sciences.

    After the democratic reforms in Tibet in 1959, the nobles lost their manors and their children began to use civilian names, said Gyaincain Banjor, who was born to a noble family and is now a retired civil servant in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

    Now only the old generation of Tibetans still bear manor titles in their names, he said.

    The disappearing of traditional noble names indicates changes in Tibet, said Tao Changsong, a researcher with the Tibet Autonomous Regional Academy of Social Sciences.

    Zhaxi, a young Tibetan man, said his name means prosperity and has been favored by many Tibetans. There are thousands of young men named Zhaxi in Tibet, he said.

    "When I was in the primary schools, there were three children named Zhaxi. The teacher had to call us Big-Zhaxi, Middle-Zhaxi, and Junior-Zhaxi," Zhaxi said.

    The namesakes also bring troubles for schools and universities. Each year after the middle school and high school examinations, they might send the entrance notices to the wrong students, according to officials with the regional education bureau.

    Tibetans believe in Buddhism and usually invite living Buddhas or lamas to christen their children or just name their children with commonly-used words indicating kindness, prosperity or goodness, Basang Wangdu said.

    Without family names, these words were repeatedly used, and a growing numbers of Tibetans are seeking unique names to display their uniqueness, he said.

    Gesang, a social science scholar, is one of those using a fresh name. Born to a family engaged in farming and herding for generations, he gave himself the family name Doilug, which is his birthplace. He used the name Doilug Gesang when publishing papers to differentiate himself from other Gesangs.

    "Tibetan family names were once used to indicate political status and now the civilians can also use family names or unique names to indicate their individuality. The stories behind the names reflect the changes in Tibetan history," Basang Wangdu said.    Enditem