What is the most interesting surname in China?

After thousands of years of development and evolution, Chinese surnames have gradually become active as a unique cultural source from a simple national genetic symbol. Some surnames are not only weird, but also often hide some interesting legends. Of course, sometimes it is inevitable to bring some embarrassment. In our country, most surnames are relatively common, but there are also some surnames that are weird, such as "East, West, South, North, Middle" with directions; "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, ninety..." with numbers; "Firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and tea" etc. There are also animal-like ones, such as "wolf, chicken, monkey, dog, snake..." and even "derogatory" ones, such as "concubine, curse, evil, whoring", etc. What's more, after some "selection" by some surname lovers, the top five weird surnames turned out to be "death, difficulty, black, old, and poison"! These five strange things sound really creepy at first! Death: It is said that this is the penultimate surname in China. It is mainly distributed in northwest China and was developed from the four-character compound surnames of ethnic minorities during the Northern Wei Dynasty. However, since ancient times, the word "death" has been very taboo. Who wants to open and shut up and "die and die"? However, if you already have this as your surname, there is nothing you can do about it, as it will only create an unlucky impression. Difficulty: It is said that this is the lowest surname in China. The word "Nan" is pronounced with a downward tone. It is said that the surname "Nan" moved north with Xianbei, and the Songhua River was also renamed "Nanjiang" at that time. After many twists and turns, the Xianbei people with the surname Nan finally set foot on the Korean Peninsula. Nowadays, the "Nan" surname in China is mainly distributed in four small villages in Henan. The men, women, old and young who have lived here for generations all have the surname "Nan". This can easily remind the outside world of unpleasant things such as disasters and difficulties, but they still live carefree. Black: Any culture advocates aboveboardness, and black characters often give people an ominous premonition. As a surname, this character is pronounced as "He", but it is more embarrassing when it is put on paper. Lao: There are two different opinions on the origin of the surname Lao. It is said that the old surname was derived from the Manchu surname "Sakda" and changed to the Han surname. It has a history of two to three hundred years. "Sakda" means "old" in Manchu. It is said that it is one of the four major indigenous surnames in Foshan, Guangdong. Now in Shilao Village in the southwest of Nanhai District, most of the villagers have the surname Lao. From the moment you are born, you will be called "Lao For example, "old comrade", "old lady", "old girl". A lady named "Lao Yan" felt this deeply. This last name brought her a lot of embarrassment. When I used to work in the workplace, everyone was easy to address when meeting me, but she was difficult to address. Old lady? Doesn’t sound good. Old girl? It doesn’t sound good either. Let's just call him Xiaolao. It always sounds awkward. Later, she started a business in Shundao Street, Hankou and became a manager. The title of "old manager" came again. At first, she felt that her last name was very special and her name was easy to remember, so she printed a large number of business cards and sent them to customers. Not to mention, this strange name did bring her many repeat customers. But gradually trouble came. Many people called me because of my reputation, but it was hard to open my mouth. "People who have never met me always think that I am very old, which makes me often explain to them on the phone." Later, Lao Yan decided to change the last name on her business card to her mother's last name, named Xia Yan. This eliminates the embarrassment. Poison: This surname is said to come from a story from the Tang Dynasty. In the Tang Dynasty, there was a prime minister named Dou Huaizheng. Although he had overwhelming power, Prime Minister Dou also planned to seize the country and overthrow the emperor surnamed Li. However, he was discovered by the emperor and the rebellion failed. Later, in order to punish Prime Minister Dou, the angry emperor gave him and his descendants the surname "Du" based on the homophony of "Dou"! This surname sounds very scary when called. Who wants to deal with "Mr. Poison" and "Mrs. Poison"? Even if people with these surnames are old-fashioned and warm-hearted, they still make strangers feel a bit afraid. It is said that there is a family named Du in Guogou, Taibao City, Chiayi County, Taiwan. Their ancestors were translators in the Qing Dynasty. After several generations of single transmission, now, six males have been produced, and this surname is also distributed in some provinces in mainland China. The above-mentioned surnames have existed since ancient times and have “evidence” to test. There are also some surnames that are "midway monks" and have legendary origins. For example, someone named "Men". There are also several legends about the origin of the family name. There is a legend that this surname was obtained after the split. The previous surname was Yan. Later, when the two brothers separated, the character Yan was divided into two. One family was named Men and the other was San. There is also a legend that the ancestors of the Men family used to have the surname Lin. Later, because someone in the ancestor offended the emperor, the emperor "cut off the head and guts" of the surname "Lin", leaving only the character "men".

Of course, these claims are difficult to prove. Someone's surname is "Mi (pronounced 'mì')". People with this surname all moved in from Jiangsu and Zhejiang. According to literary and historical records, the surname Mi comes from the Fuxi family in ancient times. In ancient times, the characters Mi and Fu were interchangeable, and the surname Fu was also called Mi. Fuxi was called Fuxi in ancient times. For a long time, a primary school teacher named "Mi Xiaojun" (pseudonym) would correct his students in this way: "My surname is Mi, not Bi." In fact, it was not just students who initially mispronounced her name. Many colleagues and acquaintances also often called her "Teacher Bi" or "Xiao Bi" because this surname is so rare and easy to pronounce incorrectly. But she no longer corrects this mistake - "It's better than being called 'Xiao Mi', right?" It turns out that in life, many people call her by her last name correctly, but it sounds like "Xiao Mi" "It's the same, but I feel uncomfortable. Someone's surname is "Chou". Legend has it that around the Northern Song Dynasty, a rich girl named Su in Hangzhou, Zhejiang fell in love with a poor scholar named Huang, but her family strongly opposed her. In search of their own happiness, the two eloped and fled to Hunan to settle down. Both families believed that the two men were detrimental to their family tradition, so they did not allow their descendants to bear their own surnames. Since ancient times, there has been a saying that "Huang Chou does not separate families", so Huang Xiucai and Miss Su changed their surname to Chou for future generations. However, there are also data confirming that the surname Chou evolved from the surname Niu which originated in the Spring and Autumn Period. There have been jokes about this surname. There is a girl named "Chou Yanchun" (pseudonym), who graduated from a business school and needs to deal with a lot of people when she goes to work. Her unique last name makes it easy to remember her, but it can also cause embarrassment. Once, Chou Yanchun met with a client. The customer asked her what her last name was, and she said it was ugly. The customer said angrily: "This is a very serious occasion, please don't joke!" Chou Yanchun couldn't laugh or cry. After repeated explanations to the customer, the misunderstanding was eliminated. There is someone named "Ou". It is said that the Ou family was not originally named Ou. One of their ancestors once served as an official in the imperial court, but later escaped alone because he offended the emperor. While evading pursuit, the ancestor hid in a pond and relied on lotus roots and leaves to hide himself. At that time, the pursuers were approaching, and he secretly prayed: "If I can escape this disaster, I will change my surname to "Ou"! As a result, the pursuers did not find him, and from then on, there was a unique "Ou" in the surname genealogy. It is said that some people changed their surnames because of "eating". There is a Chijia village in Yongle Township, Pizhou, Shaanxi. Most of the villagers have the surname "Chigan". It is said that in the late Warring States period, the young prime minister of the Qin State, Gan Luo, suffered. Lu Buwei, the treacherous minister in the court, framed him, and his family was killed, and the whole family was killed. Only an old man named Gan escaped. He looked around for food. After a while, he felt dizzy and fell down on the roadside. At some point, a group of soldiers from the Qin Dynasty came up to him and asked him what his last name was. At this time, the old man was so hungry that he could not speak. He couldn't tell, he just pointed at his mouth, as if he wanted to eat. The pursuers thought that the old man's surname was not Gan, so he pointed at his mouth, which meant that his surname was "Chi" and let him go. The old man later lived in Ping. In Chijia Village, Yongle Prefecture, he married a wife and gave birth to a large family. Remembering that he saved his life thanks to the word "Chi", the old man did not forget his old kindness, so he combined the surnames "Gan" and "Chi" to make them. Later generations had the compound surname "Chigan", and later this "Chigan" gradually evolved into today's "Chigan". Some people changed their surnames for refuge, but some people changed their surnames to honor Guan Zhong's descendants. There is a person with the surname "Bai". It was in 685 BC that Duke Huan of Qi (Xiao Bai) and Prince Jiu were competing for the throne of Qi. Guan Zhong assisted Prince Jiu at that time, but it was Duke Huan of Qi who finally ascended the throne. Regardless of the past grievances, Qi State became the most powerful country at that time. In order to commemorate this honor of their ancestors, some of Guan Zhong's descendants simply took the "Bai" of "Bai" as their surname. The descendants are now mainly distributed in Jiangsu and other places. As a line of traditional culture, China's surname culture is really long-standing and vast, and the weird surnames and anecdotes add color and are thought-provoking.