Han (
simplified Chinese: 韩;
traditional Chinese: 韓;
pinyin: Hán) is a common
Chinesesurname. The spelling "Han" is based on
China'spinyin system and so used throughout Mainland China. Spelling can vary from 'Hon' in
Cantonese-speaking areas to 'Hang' in
Hainan. It is the 15th name on the Hundred Family Surnames poem.
In 2003, Han (韩) is ranked 25th in China in terms of the number of bearers at around 8 million persons.[1] In 2019 it was the 28th most common surname in Mainland China.[2]
'
姬' (Jì) is an ancient Chinese surname. It is an alternate surname of the
Yellow Emperor (Gongsun Xuanyuan) and the
Zhou ruling family. A descendant of
King Wu of Zhou, Wan, was given land in
Hanyuan. Wan's descendants created the
State of Han during the
Warring States period. When the state was conquered by
Qin in 230 BC, members of the ruling family adopted Han '韩' as their surname.
From the transcription of non-Han names
Non-Han ethnic groups tend to adopt Chinese surnames through the process known as
sinicization. During the reforms of
Emperor Xiao Wen of Northern Wei, the
Xianbei surname 'Dahan', 大汗 (dà hàn) in Chinese, was changed to Han '韩' because the two names sound similar after 'Da' or '大' is dropped. Manchu clan names Hacihuri (
Chinese: 哈思呼哩;
pinyin: Hāsīhūlī), Hangiya (
Chinese: 韩佳;
pinyin: Hánjiā), Hanja (
Chinese: 罕扎;
pinyin: Hànzhā), Hanyan (
Chinese: 翰颜;
pinyin: Hányán), and Gilate (
Chinese: 吉喇特;
pinyin: Jílǎtè) were changed to Han '韩'.
From given name to surname
The mythical
Yellow Emperor had a son
Chang Yi (昌意), who had a son with the given name
Han Liu (韩流). Those who claimed to be Han Liu's descendants adopted Han as their surname.
By Imperial Appointment
The
Salar Muslims voluntarily joined the Ming Dynasty. The Salar clan leaders each capitulated to the
Ming Dynasty around 1370. The chief of the four upper clans around this time was Han Pao-yuan and Ming granted him office of centurion, it was at this time the people of his four clans took Han as their surname.[3] The other chief Han Shan-pa of the four lower Salar clans got the same office from Ming, and his clans were the ones who took Ma as their surname.[3]
Ma and Han are the two most widespread names among the salar. Ma is a Salar surname for the same reason it is a common
Hui surname, Ma substitutes for Muhammad.[4][5] The upper four clans of the Salar assumed the surname Han and lived west of Xunhua.[3] One of these Salar surnamed Han was Han Yimu, a Salar officer who served under General
Ma Bufang. He fought in the
Kuomintang Islamic Insurgency in China (1950–1958), leading Salars in a revolt in 1952 and 1958.[6]Han Youwen was another Salar General, who served in the Communist
People's Liberation Army.
Notable people with surname 韩/韓
Modern
Han Dong (韩东/韓東), Chinese member of a South Korean girl group
DREAMCATCHER
This page lists people with the
surnameHan. If an
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