Zhang, Wang, Li, Zhao, Qian, Sun... Each of us has our own surname. How did these surnames originate?

In the ancient Three Dynasties, "Xing" (surname) and "Shi" (clan name) were not the same thing. The "Shi" was derived from the "Xing". Starting from the Han Dynasty, surnames and clan names merged into one. Today, most Chinese surnames have been passed down for thousands of years. According to their origins, they can be roughly divided into 12 categories: taking the surname as a clan name. The surname, as a symbol of the clan in the clan society period, came into being. Later, some people directly inherited it as a clan name. In the matriarchal clan society, people took the mother's surname, so many surnames at that time had the character "nǚ" (female). For example, Ji, Jiang, Si, Yao, etc.

Taking the name of a state as a clan name. For example, the states during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, such as Qi, Lu, Jin, Song, Zheng, Wu, Yue, Qin, Chu, Wei, Han, Zhao, Wei, Yan, Chen, Cai, Cao, Hu, Xu, etc., have all become common surnames today.

Taking the name of an administrative region as a clan name. "Yi" refers to a fief, which was granted by the emperor or feudal lords to their relatives or other ministers. Some descendants or people who lived in these fiefs later adopted the name of the fief as their clan name. For example, after King Wu of Zhou granted the fief of Su (in present-day Xichuan County, Hebei Province) to Chashaeng, the descendant of Chashaeng took the surname Su. According to statistics, there are nearly 200 surnames derived from administrative regions. Some compound surnames, due to long historical evolution, are now less known.

Taking the name of a village or pavilion as a clan name. This is relatively rare, and the commonly seen surnames today include Pei, Lu, Yan, Hao, Ouyang, etc.

Taking the place of residence as a surname. There are more compound surnames among these surnames, generally with characters such as Qiu, Men, Xiang, Lu, Li, Ye, Guan, representing different types of living environments.

Taking the name or character of a forebear as a clan name. There are many surnames originating from this category, with about 500-600 according to statistics, including nearly 200 compound surnames. For example, the younger son of King Ping of Zhou was named Lin Kai, and his descendants carried the surname Lin. The son of Duke Dai of Song was Gongzi Chongshi, who was given the courtesy name Huangfu. His grandson used his grandfather's courtesy name as his clan name, and in the Han Dynasty, it was changed to Huangfu.