One of the features of China that we foreigners are not accustomed to is that so many people seem to share the same surname. But rarely are people with the same surname actually related, unless I guess we go back several thousand years.
According to the fountain of all 21st century knowledge, Wikipedia, some 92 million people have the surname Wang, which ironically means King or Emperor. The second most popular name, Li, also has 92 million users, while Zhang, the third most popular, has 87 million people. These top three surnames alone account for more people than Indonesia, the fourth most populous country in the world.
All together, the top hundred surnames account for 85% of China’s population.
By way of comparison, the most common surname in the United States – Smith – has fewer than 2.4 million people and makes up only 0.8% of the general population. The top 100 surnames in the US account for only 16% of the US population, and to reach the 85% mark that China’s top 100 names represents, you need around 150,000 surnames in the US. This is probably due to the US’s long history of immigration, something which China has rarely experienced.
According to Wikipedia, the top hits are:
- Wang, or in Cantonese,Wong, meaning king or emperor
- Li, in Cantonese Lee
- Zhang, which can also be written as Chang, and in Cantonese is pronounced Cheung
- Chen
- Liu
- Yang
- Huang. The character for Huang means Yellow colour in Chinese.
- Zhao
- Wu
- Zhou. Zhou is a popular character in reference to cities, and means circle, or round.
So, three of the top 10 names in China also have meanings, while the others are only used as names.
President Xi Jinping is truly a rarity. His family name does not even appear in the top 100.
So, next time you are in China and are introduced to Mr Wang, don’t bother asking if he’s related to the other Mr Wang you met yesterday.
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