The 严 surname
Translated from the Chinese article, which is the one that is edited (read it in Chinese).
Yan (严) is one of the surnames of Taishan. No record of the first migrant ancestor of Taishan's Yan, of when they came, or of where they live has yet been found in the sources seen so far.
Origin of the surname[edit]
The main source of the Yan surname is the Zhuang (庄) clan of the Mi (芈) surname. Descendants of King Zhuang of Chu (楚庄王) took his posthumous name, "Zhuang," as their surname; in the Eastern Han, to avoid the personal name of Emperor Ming of Han, Liu Zhuang (刘庄), some of the Zhuang changed their surname to "Yan" (严), which is close in meaning: Zhuang Guang (庄光), for example, came to be called Yan Guang (严光; Yan Ziling, 严子陵). Other accounts trace it to Yan Junji (严君疾; Chuli Ji, 樗里疾) of the state of Qin in the Warring States period, to Yan Zhongzi (严仲子), a grandee of the state of Han, and to the ancient state of Yan; the Manchu, Yi, Bai and other ethnic groups also have the surname Yan.[1]
How the Yan came to Taishan and where they live is yet to be added. Family members who know more are welcome to edit this article.
References
- "Yan (surname)", Chinese Wikipedia 「严姓」，维基百科
Last edited 2026-10-19 08:39 · Written together by this site’s users: anybody signed in can edit it, and every version is kept under History.