Name that carrier!

As many readers are aware, China has refurbished the hulk of the former (and never completed) Soviet aircraft-carrier Varyag, and sent it to sea to conduct preliminary trials.

The name China will give to its first aircraft-carrier is still unknown.  At first it was reported that the ship would be christened Shi Lang, after a famous Chinese admiral.  GlobalSecurity reports:

Jane's Fighting Ships states that Varyag may have been named Shi Lang (hull No. 83), a name reported in 2008. In the summer of 2007, it was commissioned into the PLAN. There is no corresponding official statement.

Shi Lang (1621-96) conquered Taiwan for the Kangxi emperor in 1683, previous to which it was under the sway of a Chinese chief named Koxinga. Admiral Shi Lang served as commander-in-chief of the Qing fleet of 300 warships and 20000 troops. In the 1662-64 period, the Qing government, in order to realize national reunification, had conducted peace talks 10 times over a period of 22 years. However, due to neglect of the construction and use of naval force and under the circumstance of the lack of necessary military pressure and effective military attacking capability, the first nine peace talks all ended in failures.

In 1683, Shi Lang, the navy military governor of Fujian, led more than 20,000-men to wipe out the bandits in Taiwan by employing the strategy for the use of force of "first taking Penghu and then Taiwan" and "residing invitation to surrender in annihilation". The Manchus took possession of the island and made it a district of Fukien Province, which it remained until ceded to the Japanese in 1895. Shi Lang's military and social influence carried on growing in the decade after his conquest of Taiwan. Shi Lang in his Memorial to the Emperor on Taiwan Issue analyzed the geographical situation of Taiwan, emphasized its strategic importance to the security of the southeast coast and the whole country and expressed his determination to safeguard it and keep it within the territory of China.

There's more at the link.

However, that name is apparently now in disfavor for some reason.  Journalist James Holmes had an idea - why not ask The Diplomat's readers to contribute suggestions for a new name for China's first carrier?

What kind of name should the ship have? Should it overawe all who behold it, sporting a name like Indisputable Sovereign of the Sea? Should it emphasize the cuddly side of Chinese sea power, with something like Panda Bear or Hello Kitty? Or something else? Please tell us! Enter your response in the comments below. Our crack editorial team will judge the responses and publish the winner next week. The prize will be … a date with editor Harry Kazianis!! (Editor's Note: What?)

Again, more at the link.

Needless to say, many of the suggestions submitted so far are anything but serious!  They include (but are not limited to) 'American Perfidy', 'Big Bully', 'White Elephant', 'Russian Junk' and (hilariously, clearly from an irritated Chinese reader) 'Kick Jim Holmes the Racist in the Shins'!

Why not click over to The Diplomat and leave your suggestion(s) as well?  This is fun!



Peter