 | |
| Pronunciation | Jì (Mandarin) Kei (Cantonese) |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | Chinese |
| Origin | |
| Language(s) | Old Chinese |
| Other names | |
| Variant form(s) | Chi, Kei |
Jì is the Mandarin pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname written 冀 in Chinese character. It is romanized as Chi in Wade–Giles, and Kei in Cantonese. [1] Ji is the 294th most common surname in China, with a population of 160,000. It is listed 316th in the Song dynasty classic text Hundred Family Surnames. [2]
Demographics
As of 2008, Ji 冀 is the 294th most common surname in China, shared by 160,000 people, or 0.013% of the Chinese population. [3] [4] It is concentrated in the provinces of Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong, and Henan. Shanxi has the highest number of people with the surname, accounting for 29% of the total. [4]
Origins
According to tradition, there are three main origins of the Ji 冀 surname:
1. According to the Song dynasty text Lushi, King Wu of Zhou (reigned 1046–1043 BC) enfeoffed a descendant of Emperor Yao at the state of Ji 冀, located in present-day Jishan or Anze County, Shanxi province. During the Spring and Autumn period, Ji was conquered by the neighbouring state of Jin, a major power of the time. The people of Ji subsequently adopted the name of their former state as their surname. [4] [5]
2. After Jin conquered the state of Ji, the Duke of Jin enfeoffed his minister Xi Rui ( 郤芮, died 636 BC) at Ji, Xi Rui was subsequently also called Ji Rui, and his descendants adopted the name of his fief as their surname. [4] [5]
3. A third origin of the Ji surname is the state of Song of the Zhou dynasty. A branch of the ruling house of Song adopted Ji as their surname, and this source of Ji is a branch of Zi, the ancestral name of the lords of Song. [4]
Notable people
- Ji Yuanheng ( 冀元亨; 1482–1521), Ming dynasty official
- Ji Ruxi ( 冀如錫; 1613–1686), Qing dynasty Minister of War
- The Ji brothers of Shanxi:
- Ji Chaoding (冀朝鼎; 1903–1963), economist
- Chao-Li Chi (冀朝理; 1927–2010), Chinese-American actor
- Ji Chaozhu (冀朝铸; 1929–2020), Chinese ambassador to the UK and Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations
- Ji Chunguang ( 冀春光; 1918–2013), Vice Governor of Qinghai province
- Ji Chuntang ( 冀纯堂; born 1953), former mayor of Shijiazhuang
- Ji Wenlin (冀文林; born 1966), former Vice Governor of Hainan province
References
- ^ "冀". Zdic. Retrieved 2014-06-11.
- ^ "百家姓" [Hundred Family Surnames] (in Chinese). Guoxue. Retrieved 2014-06-11.
- ^ 中国最新300大姓排名（2008） [300 most common surnames in China (2008)] (in Chinese). Taiwan.cn. 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2014-06-11.
- ^ a b c d e 冀姓起源 [Origin of the Ji surname] (in Chinese). Greater China Genealogy. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-06-11.
- ^ a b 冀姓起源,名人及家谱 [Origin and famous people of the Ji surname] (in Chinese). Shangdu. 2008-07-17. Archived from the original on 2013-07-07. Retrieved 2014-06-11.