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Li (surname Lý )

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This article is about the surname written Lý. For less common surnames written "Li", seeList of surnames romanized Li.
For the Korean surname, written as Lý in hanja, seeLee (Korean surname).
Li / Lee
TheChinese characterfor Li(Lee)
PronunciationLǐ(MandarinPinyin)
Lei5(CantoneseJyutping)
Lí(HokkienPe̍h-ōe-jī)
Language(s)Chinese,Korean,Thai,Vietnamese
Origin
Language(s)Old Chinese
MeaningPlum,plum tree
Other names
Variant form(s)Lee, Lei
Derivative(s)Lee/이 (Korean)
Lee/หลี่ (Thai)
Ly/Lý (Vietnamese)

LiorLee([lì];Chinese:Lý;pinyin:Lǐ) is a commonChinese surname,it is the 4th name listed in the famousHundred Family Surnames.[1]Li is one of the most common surnames in Asia, shared by 92.76 million people in China,[2]and more than 100 million in Asia.[3]It is thesecond-most common surnameinChinaas of 2018,[2][4]the second-most common surname inHong Kong,the most common surname inMacauand the 5th most common surname inTaiwan,where it is usually romanized as "Lee".The surname is pronounced as[lej˩˧](Jyutping:Lei5) inCantonese,Lí(poj) inTaiwanese Hokkien,but is often spelled as "Lee"inHong Kong,Macau,Taiwan,Thailandand manyoverseas Chinesecommunities. In Macau, it is also spelled as "Lei".InIndonesiait is commonly spelled as "Lie".[5]The commonKorean surname,"Lee"(also romanized as" I "," Yi "," Ri ", or" Rhee "), and theVietnamese surname,"Lý",are both derived from Lee and written with the same Chinese character ( Lý ).[6]The character also means "plum" or "plum tree".

Demographics and distribution

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Li, Lee Lý is one of the most common surnames in Asia, shared by more than 93 million people in China,[4]or about 7.4% of the Chinese population.[3]In Asia, more than 100 million people bear the surname.[3]It was formerly thought to be the most common surname in China, but a 2013 analysis of the names of 1.33 billion Chinese citizens has concluded that Li is the second-most common surname, behind Wang with 95 million people.[4]In 2019 it was again the second-most common surname in Mainland China.[7]Li Lý is the most common surname for theHakka people.[8]

Geographically, Li is one of the most common surnames inNorth ChinaandSouthwest China.[citation needed]In 2019 Li was the most common surname inSichuan,Yunnan,Chongqing,HubeiandHunan.[9]In provinces such asHenan,Hebei,Shandong,Shanxi,Jilin,Heilong gian g,andYunnan,more than 8.8% of the local population are surnamed Li. Among all Chinese provinces, Henan has the largest number of Li, accounting for 10.3% of the total.[3]Li is less common in southern and southeastern China. Comparatively speaking, inJiangxi,Zhe gian g,Fu gian,Hainan,as well asTaiwan,only 2.2 to 6.6% of the population share the surname.[3]

Origins

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According to tradition, the Li surname originated from the titleDaliheld byGao Yao,a legendary minister of theXia dynasty,and was originally written with the different character ( lý ). There is a claim thatLaozi,the founder ofDaoism,was Li Er. Li Er is the first historical person known to have the surname Li and is regarded as the founding ancestor of the surname.

Gao Yao

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According to the ninth-century Tang dynasty textYuanhe Xing Zuan,Li is a branch of the ancient ancestral nameYing ( doanh )and descends from EmperorZhuanxu,grandson of the mythicalYellow Emperor.[10]During the reign ofEmperor Yao,Gao Yaoserved asDali( đại lý ), or Minister of Law.Gao Yao's father was Shaohao ( thiếu hạo ). During theXia dynasty,Gao Yao's descendants adopted Li ( lý ) as their surname, from the titleDali(meaning "great judge" ).[3][6]

It is uncertain how the character for Li changed from the original lý to the current Lý. According to popular folklore, at the end of theShang dynasty,the minister Li Zheng ( lý chinh ) was executed byKing Zhou of Shangwho was known for his cruelty. Li Zheng's son Li Lizhen ( lý lợi trinh ) escaped with his mother to the ruins of Yihou ( y hầu chi khư ), where they survived by eating plums. In gratitude, Li Lizhen changed his surname to Lý, a character that means "plum" and is ahomophoneof lý. Li Lizhen was said to have settled at Ku County ( khổ huyện ), in modernLuyi County,Henanprovince, which is regarded as the original hometown of the Li surname.[3][6]

Laozi

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The first historical person known to have the surname is Li Er ( Lý nhĩ ), better known asLaozi(fl. 6th century BC), the philosopher who foundedTaoism.He was said to have been an eleventh-generation descendant of Li Lizhen. Laozi is widely revered as the founding ancestor of the Li surname.[3][6]

Ba people

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Another early origin of Li is the non-HuaxiaBa people, who established theBa stateduring theZhou dynastyin modern westernHubeiprovince andChongqingmunicipality. In 316 BC, Ba was conquered by thestate of Qin,which would eventually conquer all thewarring statesto establish theQin dynasty.Many Ba people adopted Li as their surname, as it sounded similar to the Ba word fortiger,which was atotemfor the Ba.[3]In 304 AD, the Ba leaderLi Xiong(Emperor Wu) establishedCheng Han,the first Li-surnamed dynasty in history.[3]

Tang dynasty

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Li Yuan (Emperor Gaozu), founder of the Tang dynasty
See also:List of emperors of the Tang dynasty

As the surname of the emperors of theTang dynasty,Li was bestowed upon or adopted by numerous people. During the period, it became one of the most commonChinese surnames.

Li was the imperial surname of theTang dynasty,founded byLi Yuanin 618 AD. One of the most prosperous and influential dynasties in Chinese history, Tang was ruled by 20 emperors surnamed Li.[3][6]The Tang dynasty imperial family belonged to the northwest military aristocracy prevalent during theSui dynastyand claimed to bepaternally descendedfromLaozi,[11][12][13]theQingeneralLi Xin,theHan dynastygeneralLi Guang,andWestern LiangrulerLi Gao.[14][15]

The Tang emperors liberally granted the royal surname to favoured generals, officials, and their clans, such asXu Shiji,Du Fuwei,andGuo Zihe( quách tử cùng ). Many non-Han people under Tang's rule were also granted the Li surname, including theEastern TujuekhanAshina Simo(Li Simo),MoheleadersLi DuozuoandLi Jin xing( Lý cẩn hành ),KhitanleadersLi GuangbiandLi Jinzhong,andGoguryogeneralLi Zhengji.SomeTibetans,Uyghurs,Persians,andJewswere also granted the Li surname. The number of people surnamed Li skyrocketed during the Tang dynasty.[3][6]

Other dynasties ruled by Li families

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During theFive Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms periodfollowing the fall of Tang in 907, theShatuogeneralLi Keyong,who had been granted the Li surname, established theJin State,precursor of theLater Tang.Li Bian(Xu Zhigao), the founder of theSouthern Tang,also changed his surname to Li. The emperors of Later Tang and Southern Tang continued the Tang tradition of liberally bestowing the Li surname on their favoured people.[6]

Other Li-surnamed dynasties includeLiang,Western Xia,andShun.All told, there have been 64 Li-surnamed emperors in Chinese history, ruling all or part of China for 650 years.[6]

Adoption by non-Han Chinese peoples

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Lý Thái Tổ, founder of the Vietnamese Lý dynasty

Influenced byChinese culture,many non-Han Chinesepeoples living in and near China have adopted Chinese-style surnames throughout history, and Li is one of the most common surnames adopted. Li has been used by theBai peoplefor more than 1,000 years, and is one of the top three surnames among the Bai. Li is the fifth of the twelve most common surnames of theYao people,who adopted the name more than 800 years ago. Li also has history of 500 years among theMiao people.Among the 55officially recognized ethnic minoritiesin China, 33 are known to use the Li surname.[6]

Outside China, the surname has also been adopted in Korea and Vietnam.

The first recording of the Korean Lee, Yi (이) surname appeared as early as in the earlyThree Kingdoms of Korea period(57 BCE - 668 CE) and was adopted among noblemen. Today, Lee (romanized as Lee, I, Yi (South Korea), Ri (North Korea)) is one of the top five Korean surnames. The surname today traces its roots to two main families in Korea. The first, the most famous, is theJeonju Yi clan,the surname ofYi Seong-gye,이성계, the first ruler of theJoseon Dynasty.Yi was also the last ruling surname in Korea and ruled for around 500 years. The second is the Gyeongju Lee clan, which was founded by Yi Al-pyeong, 이알평), one of thevillage headmenwho chosePark Hyeokgeoseas the first King ofSilla.According to theSamguk Sagi,the Yi name was officially bestowed on the family byKing Yuri of Sillaaround 9 BCE.

Li (spelledLýin modern Vietnamese) has been used inVietnamfor more than 2,000 years since theHan dynasty,whenNorthern Vietnamwas ruled as a province of the Han Empire. In 544, Vietnam gained temporary independence from China whenLý Nam Đếfounded theEarly Lý dynasty.Lý Nam Đế (Li Nan Di), as an ethnic Chinese, ruled as an emperor of Vietnam. In 1009,Lý Thái Tổestablished the LaterLý dynasty,which ruled Vietnam for more than 200 years.[6]In 1232, after the Lý dynasty was replaced by theTrần dynasty,Grand PreceptorTrần Thủ Độmade some descendants of the Lý family change their surname toNguyễn.[16]

Prominent clans

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There are historically twelve prominent clans (junwang,Quận vọng ) of Li, the most famous being those of theLongxiandZhaocommanderies.The Zhao clan, based in modernHebei'sZhao County,traces its origin fromLi Mu(died 229 BC), Lord Wu'an of theState of Zhao,a general of theWarring States period.The Zhao clan produced 17prime ministersduring the Tang dynasty.[17]In 2010, a group of nine large tombs of the Zhao clan were discovered inZanhuang County,dating from theNorthern Dynasties.[18]

The Zhao clan remained the most prominent branch of the Li until it was surpassed by the Longxi during the Tang dynasty. The Longxi clan is named after the Longxi Commandery in southernGansuprovince. Li Chong ( Lý sùng ), the first Qin governor of Longxi, is revered as its founder. The Han generalLi Guang,famous for defeating theXiongnu,came from Longxi. Centuries later, the Tang emperors traced their ancestry to the Longxi clan, making it the most prominent branch ever since.[17]The Longxi Li is considered one of the four great cultural traditions of Gansu province.Longxi Countyhas built a museum for the Li clan, and hosted the Longxi Li cultural festival in 2012.[19]

There are 2,157genealogy booksof Li families known to be extant.[3]

Historical distribution and migration

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Lee Family Temple,Kinmen,Taiwan

Having originated in what is now Henan province, Li has spread toShanxi,Hebei,Shaanxi,Sichuan,andHubeiprovinces by the end of theWarring States period.During the Qin dynasty, the Lis spread toGuangdongandGuangxiprovinces, while Li Chong established the Longxi Li clan in Gansu.[3]

During the early Tang dynasty many Lis migrated toFu gianandHainanprovinces. After the mass adoption of the imperial Li surname during the Tang period, Li became the second-most common surname during the subsequent Song dynasty, after Wang. There were approximately 5.6 million people with the surname, or 7.2% of the total population at the time, with large concentrations in the northern provinces of Hebei, Henan, andShandong.[3]

TheMongol invasion of Chinain the 13th century caused widespread depopulation in northern China. Li, being over-represented in the north, was hit especially hard. In theMing dynastyfollowing the MongolYuan dynasty,the Li-surnamed population had declined to 5.1 million, constituting 5.5% of the total population. It fell behindZhangto become the third most common surname of the time. Many of the Lis had migrated toSouth Chinaby this period.[3]

After Chinese began immigrating to the West, a significant population of Li's now reside in the United States. Many have adopted the homophonic English surname "Lee," elevating it to the22nd-most commonsurname. Over 30% of people with the surname Lee in America identify as Asian/Pacific Islander in origin, making it the most common Chinese surname in the United States.[20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^Bách Gia Tính[Hundred Family Surnames] (in Chinese). Guoxue.Retrieved2014-01-16.
  2. ^abTrương, vương, Lý, Triệu ai nhiều nhất —2010 năm dân cư tổng điều tra dòng họ kết cấu cùng phân bố đặc điểm.China Statistics Bureau. 23 June 2014.
  3. ^abcdefghijklmnopLý họ khởi nguyên[Origin of the Li surname] (in Chinese). Eastday. 2013-05-29. Archived fromthe originalon 2016-03-03.Retrieved2013-11-20.
  4. ^abcMới nhất bản Bách Gia Tính bảng xếp hạng ra lò: Vương họ thành Trung Quốc đệ nhất họ lớn[Latest surname ranking: Wang is the number one surname in China].Xinhua News Agency(in Chinese). 2013-04-15. Archived fromthe originalon April 15, 2013.Retrieved2013-11-21.
  5. ^Suryadinata, Leo(1995).Prominent Indonesian Chinese: Biographical Sketches.Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. pp. 79–86.ISBN978-981-3055-04-9.
  6. ^abcdefghijZhang, Xinbin ( trương tân bân ) (2011-06-06).Trung Hoa Lý họ văn hóa đặc thù cùng tìm căn lịch sử sứ mệnh(in Chinese). China Laozi Network.Retrieved2013-11-21.
  7. ^"Tân kinh báo - hảo tin tức, vô chừng mực".
  8. ^Lý họ — người Hẹ đệ nhất họ lớn.China Review News(in Chinese). 2007-02-06.Retrieved2013-11-21.
  9. ^"Tân kinh báo - hảo tin tức, vô chừng mực".
  10. ^Lý dược sư (6 June 2012).Lý họ là Chuyên Húc đế Cao Dương thị trực hệ hậu duệ(in Chinese). Xinhua. Archived fromthe originalon January 25, 2013.Retrieved27 August2013.
  11. ^Latourette 1934,p. 191.
  12. ^Greg Woolf (2007).Ancient civilizations: the illustrated guide to belief, mythology, and art.Barnes & Noble. p. 219.ISBN978-1-4351-0121-0.
  13. ^James M. Hargett (2006).Stairway to Heaven: A Journey to the Summit of Mount Emei.SUNY Press. pp. 54–.ISBN978-0-7914-6682-7.
  14. ^Drompp 2005,p. 126.
  15. ^Mair & Steinhardt & Goldin 2005,p. 376.
  16. ^Nguyễn, Vy Khanh."Lược sử tên họ người Việt"[History of Vietnamese family names and given names](PDF)(in Vietnamese). Văn Hóa Publishing.Retrieved27 November2013.
  17. ^abTrung Quốc cổ đại mười đại danh môn vọng tộc[Ten most prominent clans in ancient China] (in Chinese). STNN. 2013-03-07. Archived fromthe originalon 2013-12-12.Retrieved2013-12-08.
  18. ^Hà Bắc tán hoàng phát hiện Bắc triều Triệu quận Lý thị gia tộc mộ.Xinhua(in Chinese). 2010-01-26. Archived fromthe originalon January 30, 2010.Retrieved2013-12-08.
  19. ^Trung Quốc Lý họ cái nôi đem tổ chức lần thứ nhất Lý thị văn hóa du lịch tiết.Phoenix TV(in Chinese). 2012-07-23.Retrieved2013-12-08.
  20. ^United States Census Bureau."Genealogy Data: Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000Archived2009-12-21 at theWayback Machine".27 Sept 2011. Accessed 29 Mar 2012.
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