川（chuan）
Name meaning
川 (chuan) means a river, stream course or flowing waterway. In a given name it can suggest openness, steady movement, broad landscape and a life that keeps moving without losing direction. The character is simple in shape, so the name should give it a clear second idea rather than leaving it as scenery alone.
Practical naming use
Use 川 (chuan) when the name should feel clear, spacious and naturally forward-moving. It fits calm leadership, travel, learning, design, environmental fields or a personality image of steady flow. Pair it with a character that adds aspiration, ethics or refinement.
Pair 川 (chuan) with a character that gives the river image human direction, such as 川安 (Chuanan) Chuan'an, 川远 (Chuanyuan), 川明 (Chuanming) or 川德 (Chuande). Avoid pairings where both characters are only landscape words unless the family specifically wants a nature-forward name.
川安 (Chuanan): Chuan contributes river, plain; An adds peace, safety.
Reference
Analects, Zihan
Zhuangzi, Autumn Floods
Historical / name-use references
元季川 (Yuan Jichuan)
Yuan Jichuan was listed in Tang Caizi Zhuan among Tang literary figures associated with reclusive study and poetry. His name provides premodern name-use evidence for 川 (Chuan) as part of a given name, separate from the river meaning itself.