The Chinese word 约翰 is formed through phonetic transliteration, specifically by selecting characters whose pronunciations closely approximate the sounds of the foreign name "John". The character 约 (yuē) mimics the "Jo" sound, while 翰 (hàn) captures the "hn" ending, together creating an auditory equivalent that aligns with Chinese phonological constraints. This process is a standard approach for rendering foreign names into Chinese, focusing solely on sound correspondence without inherent meaning in the characters themselves.