Yu is the

pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese fo ...

romanisation of several

Chinese family name Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia. Written Chinese names begin with surnames, unlike the ...

s. However, in the

Wade–Giles Wade–Giles () is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from a system produced by Thomas Francis Wade, during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert A. Giles's '' Chinese–English Dictionary'' o ...

romanisation system, Yu is equivalent to You in pinyin. "Yu" may represent many different

Chinese characters Chinese characters () are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese. In addition, they have been adapted to write other East Asian languages, and remain a key component of the Japanese writing system where they are known as ''kanji ...

, including 余, 于, 由, 魚 (鱼), 漁(渔), 楀, 俞(兪), 喻 (this character is 35th name on the ''

Hundred Family Surnames The ''Hundred Family Surnames'' (), commonly known as ''Bai Jia Xing'', also translated as ''Hundreds of Chinese Surnames'', is a classic Chinese text composed of common Chinese surnames. An unknown author compiled the book during the Song dy ...

'' poem), 於, 遇, 虞, 郁, 尉, 禹, 游, 尤, 庾, 娛(娱), and 茹 (Rú). The most common of the Yu surnames are 于, 余, and 俞. In China, 0.62% of the population have the family name 于 in 2002 (about 7.4 million), and this surname is most common in

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in His ...

province and northeastern China. Around 0.41% of the population have the surname 余 in 2002 (over five million), and it is most common in

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...

and

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...

provinces. The 俞 surname represents around 0.12% of China's population.

Surname Yu (于)

Surname Yu (余)

Surname Yu (俞)

History

Yu () is said to have been derived as a term used by medical practitioners Yu (腧) since the time of

The Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch or by his Chinese name Huangdi (), is a deity ('' shen'') in Chinese religion, one of the legendary Chinese sovereigns and culture heroes included among the mytho-historical Three Sovereign ...

. The two words are closely related and the family name was change from Yu (腧) to Yu (俞). During the

Zhou Dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...

period, the

Zheng (state) Zheng (; ; Old Chinese: *') was a vassal state in China during the Zhou Dynasty (1046–221 BCE) located in the centre of ancient China in modern-day Henan Province on the North China Plain about east of the royal capital at Luoyang. It was ...

ruler

Duke Wen of Zheng Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are r ...

(鄭文公)'s son created a family name Yu (俞). The surname was also used by the ruling families of the

State of Chu Chu, or Ch'u in Wade–Giles romanization, (, Hanyu Pinyin: Chǔ, Old Chinese: ''*s-r̥aʔ'') was a Zhou dynasty vassal state. Their first ruler was King Wu of Chu in the early 8th century BCE. Chu was located in the south of the Zhou ...

. The surname is also found in various minority people such as the

Yi people The Yi or Nuosu people,; zh, c=彝族, p=Yízú, l=Yi ethnicity historically known as the Lolo,; vi, Lô Lô; th, โล-โล, Lo-Lo are an ethnic group in China, Vietnam, and Thailand. Numbering nine million people, they are the seve ...

(彝),

Hui people The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the ...

(回), etc. It is the 57th name on the ''

'' poem.K. S. Tom.

989 Year 989 ( CMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Emperor Basil II uses his contingent of 6,000 Varangians to help him defeat ...

(1989). Echoes from Old China: Life, Legends and Lore of the Middle Kingdom.

University of Hawaii Press A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

. .

Prominent people with family name 俞

* Yu Dayou 俞大猷, pirate suppressor. * Yu Dechao 俞德超, biotechnology inventor and entrepreneur * Yu Zigao 俞諮皋, Chinese patriot of the Ming Dynasty. * Yu Zhengsheng, Chinese politician, current Chairman of the

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC, zh, 中国人民政治协商会议), also known as the People's PCC (, ) or simply the PCC (), is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of ...

. In Korean the name is transcribed as Yoo. * Yu Hung-Chun *

Yu Kuo-Hwa Yu Kuo-hwa () (January 10, 1914 – October 4, 2000) was the Premier of the Republic of China from 1984 to 1989. Biography He was born on 10 January 1914 in Fenghua, Ningbo, Zhejiang, Republic of China, China. He studied for degrees at Harvard ...

Surname Yu (虞)

The surname was derived from the State of Yú 虞国. The name is transliterated as ''Ngu'' in Vietnamese but is very rare in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

History

According to Chinese legend, Yu () is an ancient surname in China. The ancestors of the surname were closely linked with the ancient sage-king named Yu Shun. When Yu Shun was getting old, he took his initiative to hand over the state power to Da Yu. Da Yu granted Yu Shun's son Shang Jun (商均) the Yu kingdom (虞国, now in Yucheng, Henan Province). Later, the descendants of Shang Jun took the name of the kingdom as their surname. During the

, Zhou Wu Wang (1,134-1,115BC) granted the descendants of

Zhongyong of Wu Zhongyong () was the second ruler of the ancient Chinese State of Wu according to traditional Chinese history. His ancestral name was Ji (姬), given name was Yong, and Zhong refers to his rank as the second son of King Tai of Zhou. According t ...

, the son of

King Tai of Zhou King Tai of Zhou () or Gugong Danfu () was a great leader of the Zhou clan during the Shang dynasty. His great-grandson Fa would later conquer the Shang and establish the Zhou dynasty. Name "King Tai" was a posthumous name bestowed upon him by hi ...

, territory to the northeast of Pinglu in

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-leve ...

. The kingdom was named Yu (虞国) and they took the name of Yu (虞) after the kingdom.

Prominent people with family name 虞

Yu Fan Yu Fan (, , ; 164–233), courtesy name Zhongxiang, was a Chinese essayist, politician, and writer of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Initially a minor officer under Wang Lang, the Administrator of Kuaiji Com ...

Yu Hsiao-cheng Yu Hsiao-cheng () is a Taiwanese politician. He was the Deputy Chairperson of the National Communications Commission (NCC) of the Executive Yuan. NCC Deputy Chairmanship NCC Deputy Chairperson Appointment Yu, a professor at the National Chiao ...

, Deputy Chairperson of National Communications Commission of the Republic of China * Yu Shinan * Concubine Yu

Others

Surname 魚

The name is transliterated as ''Ngư'' in Vietnamese but is very rare in

Surname 郁

The name is transliterated as ''Úc/Uất'' in Vietnamese but is very rare in

. * Yu Dafu

Surname 庾

The name is transliterated as ''Dữu'' in Vietnamese but is very rare in

Prominent people with family name 庾

* Harlem Yu, Taiwanese entertainer * Yu Xin, poet

References

External links

History of the Surname 'Yu' (Chinese)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yu (Chinese Surname) Chinese-language surnames Multiple Chinese surnames

Surname Yu (于)

Surname Yu (余)

Surname Yu (俞)

History

Prominent people with family name 俞

Surname Yu (虞)

History

Prominent people with family name 虞

Others

Surname 魚

Surname 郁

Surname 庾

Prominent people with family name 庾

See also

References

External links