Ji (surname 纪)

For other Chinese surnames also romanized as "Ji", see Ji (surname).
Ji (纪/紀)
Pronunciation Jǐ (Mandarin)
Kei (Cantonese)
Language(s) Chinese
Origin
Language(s) Old Chinese
Other names
Variant(s) Chi, Kei

is the Mandarin pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname written in simplified Chinese and 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.[1]

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.[2][3] It is concentrated in Beijing, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Shandong, which together account for 48% of the total.[3]

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.[3][4]

Notable people

References

  1. "百家姓" [Hundred Family Surnames] (in Chinese). Guoxue. Retrieved 2014-02-25.
  2. 中国最新300大姓排名(2008) [300 most common surnames in China (2008)] (in Chinese). Taiwan.cn. 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2014-03-05.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 纪姓起源 [Origin of the Ji surname] (in Chinese). Greater China Genealogy. Retrieved 2014-03-05.
  4. 纪姓起源,名人及家谱 [Origin and famous people of the Ji surname] (in Chinese). Shangdu. 2008-07-17. Retrieved 2014-03-05.