Yǐn (surname) explained

Yǐn
Pronunciation:Yǐn (Pinyin)
Language:Chinese
Language origin:Chinese
Meaning:"prefectural magistrate"

Yin is a Chinese surname. In 800 BCE, Bo Jifu, a renowned judge during the reign of King Xuan of Zhou, held the position of Yin (equivalent to First Minister or most favored Minister) and changed his name to Yin Jifu. During the era of the Imperial Examination System, three other magistrates took on the surname Yǐn (Chinese: ) to denote their Imperial rank and favoured status. It is the 100th name on the Hundred Family Surnames poem.[1]

The Korean surname Yun and the Vietnamese surname Doãn are derived from Yin and traditionally written in the same Chinese character.

A 2013 study found it to be the 79th most common surname, being shared by 3,460,000 people or 0.260% of the population, with the province with the most being Hunan.[2]

Notable people

Notes and References

  1. K. S. Tom. [1989] (1989). Echoes from Old China: Life, Legends and Lore of the Middle Kingdom. University of Hawaii Press. .
  2. 中国四百大姓, 袁义达, 邱家儒, Beijing Book Co. Inc., 1 January 2013