Ji (surname 冀)

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. 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.

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. 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.

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.

Ji (surname 姞)

Jí is the Mandarin pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname written 姞 in Chinese character. It is romanized as Chi in Wade–Giles, and Gat in Cantonese. One of the ancient ancestral names, Ji 姞 is an uncommon surname today. It is not listed in the Song dynasty classic text Hundred Family Surnames.

The Ji clan is said to have descended from the Yellow Emperor. Bo Tiao (伯儵), a leader of the clan, was enfeoffed at Southern Yan (南燕, in modern Weihui, Henan). His descendants later dropped the 女 radical from their surname, which became Ji 吉, which is now the 195th most common surname in China.

Besides Southern Yan, branches of the Ji 姞 clan also established the minor states of Mixu (密须) and Bi (偪) during the Zhou dynasty.

References

Ji (surname 暨)

Jì is the Mandarin pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname written 暨 in Chinese character. It is romanized as Chi in Wade–Giles and Kei in Cantonese. Ji is listed 345th in the Song dynasty classic text Hundred Family Surnames. It is not among the 300 most common surnames in China.

Origins

According to tradition, there are two main sources of the Ji 暨 surname:

1. From Luzhong (陆终), a great-great-grandson of the legendary emperor Zhuanxu. Luzhong's father Wuhui (吴回) was put in charge of fire by Emperor Ku and given the title of Zhu Rong. A descendant of Dapeng (大彭), the third son of Luzhong, was enfeoffed in Ji 暨 (in modern Dongmocheng Township, Jiangyin, Jiangsu), and his descendants adopted Ji as their surname.

2. From Fugai (夫概), a younger brother of King Helü of the Kingdom of Wu, a major power of the Spring and Autumn period. Fugai attempted to usurp the throne of Wu, but was defeated by Helü and fled to the Kingdom of Chu. Some descendants of Fugai adopted Gai 概, the second character in Fugai's name, as their surname. It was later changed to the similar character Ji 暨.

Ji (surname 己)

Jǐ is the Mandarin pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname written 己 in Chinese character. It is romanized as Chi in Wade–Giles. One of the ancient ancestral names, Ji is an uncommon surname today. It is not listed in the Song dynasty classic text Hundred Family Surnames.

Ji 己 is one of the eight surnames of Zhu Rong, related to the Mi clan, which founded Chu, a major state during the Zhou dynasty. Scholar Li Xuanbo believes that the name originates from the clan's totem of snake. The Chinese character Ji 己 resembles a snake.

During the Zhou dynasty, branches of the Ji 己 clan established the minor states of Ju, Tan (郯), and Wen (温).

References

Ji (surname)

Ji is the pinyin romanization of a number of distinct Chinese surnames that are written with different characters in Chinese. Depending on the character, it may be spelled Jī, Jí, Jǐ, or Jì when tone diacritics are used. In Wade–Giles they are romanized as Chi. Languages using the Latin alphabet do not distinguish among the different Chinese surnames, rendering them all as Ji or Chi.

Surnames romanized as Ji

Ancient ancestral names

Other surnames

Ji (surname 纪)

Jǐ is the Mandarin pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname written 纪 in simplified Chinese and 紀 in traditional Chinese. It is romanized as Chi in Wade–Giles, and Kei in Cantonese. Ji is the 136th most common surname in China, with a population of 1.1 million. It is listed 122nd in the Song dynasty classic text Hundred Family Surnames.

Demographics

As of 2008, Ji 纪 is the 136th most common surname in China, shared by 1.1 million people, or 0.088% of the Chinese population. It is concentrated in Beijing, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Shandong, which together account for 48% of the total.

Origin

Ji 纪 originated from the ancient state of Ji in present-day Shouguang, Shandong province. In 690 BC, Ji was conquered and annexed by Duke Xiang of the neighbouring state of Qi, and the people of Ji adopted the name of their former state as their surname. The Ji 纪 surname is a branch of Jiang 姜, the surname of ruling clan of the Ji state.

Notable people