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Chinese surnames have a history of over 3,000 years. Chinese mythology, however, reaches back further to the legendary figure Fuxi (with the surname Feng), who was said to have established the system of Chinese surnames to distinguish different families and prevent marriage of people with the same family names. [8]
During the earliest Chinese antiquity, Chinese society focused on women. Family names often passed from women to their children. Because of this phenomenon, these eight surnames have a component of their hanzi representing the character woman (女). [1] [4] As of 2019, very few people had one of these surnames as a family name. [2]
This list of the 100 most common Chinese surnames derives from China's Ministry of Public Security's annual report on the top 100 surnames in China, with the latest report release in January 2020 for the year 2019. [9] When the 1982 Chinese census was first published, it did not include a list of top surnames.
Pages in category "Chinese-language surnames" The following 200 pages are in this category, out of approximately 349 total. This list may not reflect recent changes .
Hundred Family Surnames poem written in Chinese characters and Phagspa script, from Shilin Guangji written by Chen Yuanjing in the Yuan dynasty. The Hundred Family Surnames (Chinese: 百家姓), commonly known as Bai Jia Xing, [1] also translated as Hundreds of Chinese Surnames, [2] is a classic Chinese text composed of common Chinese surnames.
Chinese family names are patrilineal, meaning derived from father to children. [8] [9] After marriage, Chinese women typically retain their maiden name. [10]Two distinct types of Chinese surnames existed in ancient China: Namely xing (Chinese: 姓; pinyin: xìng) or ancestral clan names, and shi (Chinese: 氏; pinyin: shì) or branch lineage names.
Thirty-nine members of the family ruled China during this period while many others ruled as local lords, lords who eventually gained great autonomy during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. Ji is a relatively uncommon surname in modern China, largely because its bearers often adopted the names of their states and fiefs as new ...
Originally, Chinese surnames were derived matrilineally, [8] although by the time of the Shang dynasty (1600 to 1046 BC) they had become patrilineal. [8] [9] Chinese women do not change their names upon marriage. [10] In China, surnames have been the norm since at least the 2nd century BC. [11]