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From Surname SHEN to YOU

Author: CHUNG Yoon-Ngan
Date: 06-14-03 14:55

From Surname SHEN To YOU
由沈姓到尤姓

During the Sui Dynasty (隋朝 518AD to 617AD) Li Yuan (李淵), the general responsible for the defence of Jin Yang (晉陽) and Tai Yuan (太原 present day Tai Yuan city in Shanxi province 山西省) against the nomads from the north, rebelled against the Sui Court. Li Yuan founded the Tang Dynasty (唐朝 618AD to 907AD. However, the Tang Dynasty started to decline in around 760AD. It was mainly due to the breakdown of the tax systems, the military defense and the extravagant in governmental expenditures.

In 907AD, Zhu Wen (朱溫), the imperial military commissioner usurped the throne and founded his own dynasty, the Later Liang Dynasty (後梁朝 907AD to 923AD). That was the end of the Tang Dynasty after 290 years in existence.

After the collapse of the Tang Dynasty the land entered the period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. The five dynasties that followed one another in quick succession were in North China. The ten kingdoms were in South China.

In the same year in 907AD Wang Shen Zhi (王審知) the military governor of Chang Le Jun (長樂郡) founded the Min Kingdom (閩國). One of the kingdoms in South China. He established his capital at Chang Le (長樂 present day Fu Zhou 福州 city in Fujian province 福建省). Wang Shen Zhi titled himself the King of the Min Kingdom (閩國王). He decreed that no one should share the same name with him. He ordered the surname of Shen (沈) to be changed since the pronunciation of surname Shen was the same as his name Shen (審) one of the characters of his name Wang Shen Zhi. He decided that the radical three dots which means water on the left side of surname Shen should be deleted and one dot should be added to the top on the right hand corner of the modified character which ultimately became YOU (尤). Wang Shen Zhi issued a decree ordering all those bearing the surname SHEN to change to YOU. Overnight the surname of SHEN disappeared from his domain.

Luckily Wang Shen Zhi controlled only a small part of China (present day Fujian province). If he had conquered the whole of China surname Shen would have disappeared from history.

Eventually, in 945AD the Kingdom of Min was conquered by the Kingdom of Southern Tang (南唐) which was another kingdom in the South. Many people with the new surname YOU did not bother to revert to their old surname Shen. Thus, the two surname of SHEN and YOU came from the same ancestor, Ji Dai (姬戴)

CHUNG Yoon-Ngan (鄭永元)
All rights reserved 14062003

Yoon-Ngan

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From Surname CHEN to YUAN

Author: CHUNG Yoon-Ngan
Date: 06-22-03 01:07

From surname CHEN to surname YUAN
由陳姓到袁姓

Gui Efu (媯閼父), an offspring of Shun Di (舜帝), a chief of the federated tribes in ancient China, assisted Zhou King Wu (周武王) in destroying the Shang Dynasty (商朝 c1783BC to c1122BC). Zhou King Wu rewarded Gui Efu by employing him as a Tao Zheng (陶正) or official in charge of weapons.

Gui Man (媯滿), the eldest son of Gui Efu, married Zhou King Wu's eldest daughter, Da Ji (大姬). Hu Gong (胡公) was the name given by Zhou King Wu to his son-in-law. Gui Man came to be known as Hu Gong Man (胡公滿). Zhou King Wu not only bestowed upon Hu Gong Man the hereditary title of Hou (侯) or Marquis but also gave him the authority to rule a district called Chen (陳 present day Huai Yang county 淮陽縣 in Henan province 河南省). Hu Gong Man renamed the district of Chen the State of Chen (陳國) and established his capital in Wan Qiu (宛丘 present day Huai Yang county in Henan province). Hu Gong Man was the founder of the State of Chen.

After Hu Gong Man, very little was written about the rulers of the State of Chen until in the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋時代 722BC to 481BC), when in 754BC Gui Yu (媯圉) was installed as the eleventh ruler of the state of Chen. Gui Yu had a son by the name of Zhuang Bo (莊伯), who fathered Bo Yuan (伯轅). The Chinese word of Yuan (轅), which means the shafts of a cart or carriage, is a combination of two radicals of Che (車) and Yuan (袁). Gui Taotu (媯濤塗), who was one of the many sons of Bo Yuan, for unknown reasons, did not like his surname Gui. Instead, he used his father's name Yuan (轅) as his surname, by deleting the radical of Che (車), which ultimately the modified word became Yuan (袁). He used Yuan (袁), half of the word Yuan (轅) as his surname. Yuan (轅) and Yuan (袁) have the same pronunciation. Gui Taotu became Yuan Taotu (袁濤塗). He gave his children the surname YUAN (袁) and his descendants continued to use Yuan (袁) as their surname.

CHUNG Yoon-Ngan (鄭永元)
All rights reserved 22062003

Yoon-Ngan

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Re: From Surname CHEN to YUAN

Author: CHUNG Yoon-Ngan
Date: 06-22-03 01:40

Note:

In 478BC the state of Chen (陳國) was subjugated by the state of Chu (楚國).
The state of Chen became a part of the state of Chu. That was the end of the State of Chen. All the members of the royal house of Chen changed their surname from Gui (媯) to Chen (陳) in remembrance of their beloved State. Nowadays, there are very few people with this ancient surname of Gui.

That is what in my previous post stated
"From surname CHEN to surname YUAN"
由陳姓到袁姓
CHUNG Yoon-Ngan (鄭永元)
22062003

Yoon-Ngan

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