The 伍 surname

Wu (伍) is one of the major surnames of Taishan. The Taishan Wu honor Wu Can (伍参), a high official (dafu) of the state of Chu in the Spring and Autumn period, as their great founding ancestor; their genealogies record that their forebears lived in Bianliang (汴梁, today's Kaifeng, Henan), moved south in the Southern Song, and settled at Doudong (斗洞) in Wenzhangli (文章里), in the old Xinhui County (新会县), around today's Dutou (渡头) in Dajiang Town (大江镇), Taishan City; there they divided into two branches, Zhuguo (柱国), or Lüwei (绿围), and Hanyuan (翰苑), and over the Ming and Qing they gradually spread across the whole county.^[1][2] According to a record from the late 1990s, the Taishan Wu number about sixty thousand or more, most concentrated in the three towns of Dajiang, Sijiu (四九) and Chonglou (冲蒌).^[1]

Origin of the surname[edit]

The Wu surname is generally held to come from Wu Can, a high official of Chu in the Spring and Autumn period. According to the Compendium of Surnames (《姓纂》), Wu Can was the father of Wu Ju (伍举), Wu Ju the father of Wu She (伍奢), and Wu She's son Wu Yun (伍员), courtesy name Zixu (子胥), fled to the state of Wu (吴). Other accounts say that descendants of Kangshu of Wei (卫康叔) were enfeoffed at Wulu (伍鹿) and later changed to the single-character surname Wu, or that the Diwu (第五) clan changed their surname to Wu. The ancestral commandery of the Wu is Anding (安定).^[3]

The genealogical records of the Taishan Wu trace the line further back: they say that a descendant of Shennong (神农) was enfeoffed at Jiao (椒) and his descendants took Jiao as their clan name, and that Jiao Ju (椒举), son of Jiao Can (椒参), served Chu and was enfeoffed with the land of Wu (伍), and so changed Jiao to Wu. The genealogy counts Jiao Can (that is, Wu Can) as the 1st generation, Wu Ju as the 2nd, Wu She as the 4th and Wu Yun as the 5th.^[1]

Coming to Taishan[edit]

The genealogy records that after Wu Zixu his descendants took refuge in Wuling (武陵), after which the line was lost for about thirty generations, and it can be traced again only from Wu Qiao (伍乔), Minister of Personnel of the Southern Tang in the Five Dynasties. Wu Qiao's descendants served the Tang and the Song generation after generation and lived in Guanwang Lane (关王巷), Bianliang. The line came down to Qin Gong (钦公; the 44th generation, as the genealogy counts), who had six sons: Shi (仕), Shang (商), Lü (旅), Mang (氓), Gong (工) and Jia (贾). The Taishan Wu are descended only from the Lü and Mang branches; Lü Gong and Mang Gong were brothers.^[1]

The Zhuguo Fang (Lüwei Fang)

Mang Gong, courtesy name Yusheng (毓圣), was Qin Gong's fourth son. The genealogy records that he became a jinshi (palace graduate) in the 5th year of Xuanhe of the Northern Song (1123), served as a captain of the palace guard (dianqian xiaowei), and was made Supreme Pillar of State (shang zhuguo) by imperial decree; later, having offended the emperor with his counsel, he was banished to Lingnan (岭南), where he guarded Nan'en Prefecture (南恩州); he died in office and was buried at Xiangshan (象山), Yangjiang (阳江). The genealogy records that he was born in the 4th year of Shaosheng of the Northern Song (1097) and died in the 22nd year of Shaoxing of the Southern Song (1152). His wife, née Mai (麦氏), settled with their two sons Chaozuo (朝佐) and Chaokai (朝凯) at Doudong in Wenzhangli; tradition holds that Madam Mai planted willows around the village, so the village was named Lüwei ("green enclosure"), and their descendants are called the Lüwei Fang; and because Mang Gong had been made Supreme Pillar of State, they are also called the Zhuguo Fang.^[1] The genealogy records that the descendants of the Zhuguo Fang live scattered in Nanshan (南山), Mucun Village (幕村), Maiyuan (麦园), Lunjiao (伦滘), Hengjiang (横江), Nama (那马) and other places, and that some moved to Guangzhou, Yangchun (阳春) and Yangjiang.^[1]

The Hanyuan Fang

Lü Gong's son Zheng (正), art name Jiashan (佳山), is recorded in the genealogy as having become a jinshi in the Shaoxing reign of the Southern Song and been given the post of Hanlin dianzhang (翰林典章); he moved south from Bianliang to Zhuji Lane (珠玑巷) in Nanxiong (南雄), and two generations later his family moved again, to Daxiang (大巷) at Doudong in Wenzhangli, Xinhui; the genealogy honors Jiashan Gong as the first migrant ancestor of Daxiang. The lintel over the gate of the Jiashan Gong Ancestral Hall (佳山公祠) bears the words "Hanyuan Liufang" (翰苑流芳, "the lasting fame of the Hanlin"), so he is called Hanyuan Gong, and his descendants the Hanyuan Fang. Jiashan Gong and Mang Gong were nephew and uncle.^[1] The descendants of the Hanyuan Fang live in Daxiang, Shanqian (山前), Lianghan (良含), Magang (马岗), Shangping (上坪), Guandou (官窦), Shatouchong (沙头冲), Nafu (那扶) and other places, and some moved to Gaoyao (高要), Xinxing (新兴) and Dalan (大榄) in Xiangshan (香山).^[1]

According also to the Taishan County Gazetteer of Local Lore (《台山县乡土志》), the Wu of Namagang (那马冈) came from Zhuji Lane in Nanxiong.^[4]

Generation names

Each branch has a sequence of twenty generation names. The Zhuguo Fang's was set in the 13th year of Wanli of the Ming (1585), beginning with 启 (Qi) in the 14th generation after Mang Gong: "启 (Qi) 元 (Yuan) 应 (Ying) 瑞 (Rui) 重 (Zhong), 道 (Dao) 德 (De) 允 (Yun) 维 (Wei) 荣 (Rong), 文 (Wen) 学 (Xue) 于 (Yu) 时 (Shi) 尚 (Shang), 世 (Shi) 思 (Si) 绍 (Shao) 圣 (Sheng) 明 (Ming)". The Hanyuan Fang's was set in the 2nd year of Tianqi of the Ming (1622), beginning with 绍 (Shao) in the 13th generation after Lü Gong: "绍 (Shao) 宜 (Yi) 伟 (Wei) 茂 (Mao) 奕 (Yi), 运 (Yun) 会 (Hui) 际 (Ji) 昌 (Chang) 明 (Ming), 鸿 (Hong) 勋 (Xun) 耀 (Yao) 列 (Lie) 祖 (Zu), 嘉 (Jia) 猷 (You) 献 (Xian) 大 (Da) 廷 (Ting)". Because the generations of the Zhuguo Fang succeeded one another faster, the generation names of men of the same generation in the two branches do not correspond: the Hanyuan Fang's 绍 (Shao) generation lived at roughly the same time as the Zhuguo Fang's 元 (Yuan) generation. There are also twenty reserve characters: "光 (Guang) 宗 (Zong) 开 (Kai) 令 (Ling) 嗣 (Si), 衍 (Yan) 绪 (Xu) 普 (Pu) 慈 (Ci) 仁 (Ren), 保 (Bao) 大 (Da) 勤 (Qin) 承 (Cheng) 业 (Ye), 端 (Duan) 和 (He) 永 (Yong) 协 (Xie) 伦 (Lun)".^[1]

Distribution[edit]

The two Wu branches first lived together at Doudong, and in the Ming and Qing moved one after another to sixteen towns and townships, among them Dajiang, Sijiu, Chonglou, Duanfen (端芬), Sanhe (三合), Doushan (斗山), Wencun (汶村), Nafu, Shenjing (深井), Haiyan (海宴), Guanghai (广海), Duhu (都斛) and Shangchuan (上川). According to Origins of Taishan's Surnames (《台山姓氏源流》; vol. 1, compiled and printed in the late 1990s), the Taishan Wu number about sixty thousand or more, about six percent of the city's population. The approximate numbers in each place are as follows (all figures from that time):^[1]

• Dajiang Town: the eight townships of Shachong (沙冲), Daxiang, Wuxing (五星), Shanqian, Meibian (梅边), Lianhe (联和), Zhoujiang (洲江) and Lai'an (来安), and Doushan Village (斗山村) in Shiqiao Township (石桥乡); about 15,400 people
• Sijiu Town: the four townships of Xiaping (下坪), Shangping, Songtou (松头) and Jinlang (锦朗), and some villages of Gaoling (高岭), Tangxia (塘虾), Yingcun (营村) and other townships; about 12,300 people
• Chonglou Town: Guandou, Chaoyang (朝阳), Zhuluo (竹洛), Xinwei (新围), Xihai (西海), Bajia (八家) and other townships, and some villages of Renping (稔坪), Fu'an (福安) and Sanlang (伞朗); about ten thousand people
• Duanfen Town: Xize (西泽), Meiwan (美湾), Qilian (七联), Nachao (那潮), Naren (那仁), Tangdi (塘底) and other townships; about 5,300 people
• Haiyan: Lianhe, Hebei (和北; Xinzhai 新寨, Nama and Shawan 沙湾) and other townships and the villages nearby, more than 5,000 people; Jiaole (茭勒) and other places have another 1,000 or more
• Doushan Town: Fuchang Township (福场乡) and some villages of Xizha (西栅), Annan (安南) and Liufu (六福); about 2,800 people
• Xinwei Village (新围村) and Yong'an Village (永安村) in Xiaojiang (小江), Shenjing Town: about 2,000 people; Anbu (安步) in Daheng Township (大亨乡), Fucheng Town (附城镇): about 2,000 people
• Nafu Town: about 1,400 people; Sangang Township (三冈乡) in Lian'an (联安), Sanhe Town, and other places: more than 1,000 people
• Those living scattered in Shangkeng Village (上坑村), Taicheng (台城), in Juziwan (桔子湾), Shangchuan, and in Duhu, Guanghai, Beidou (北陡) and other places: more than 3,000 people in all

Surname Culture of Chixi (《赤溪姓氏文化》), compiled by the Chixi Hakka Culture Research Society of Taishan (台山市赤溪客家文化研究会), also lists the Wu among the Hakka surnames of Chixi Town (赤溪镇).^[5]

Ancestral halls and overseas Chinese magazines[edit]

• The Jiashan Gong Ancestral Hall, with "Hanyuan Liufang" over its gate.^[1]
• Taishan has the saying "the Huang and the Wu are one family" (黄伍一家亲). According to the tradition of the Huang of Chuanbu (船步), in the Xuande reign of the Ming the daughter of Huang Bangyong (黄邦用), founder of the Chuanbu Huang settlement, married into the Wu of Doudong; her son drowned at Chuanbu, and the Huang family put a son of their own in his place; when the truth later came out, the two clans became sworn brothers. Overseas, the Huang and the Wu both belong to the Yunshan Association (云山公所).^[6]
• The All-America Wu Xushan Association (全美伍胥山总公所), with a history of 105 years as of 2013; there are Wu Xushan associations in many places.^[7]
• There is an overseas magazine, Xushan Monthly (《胥山月刊》).^[1]

People[edit]

• Wu Longqi (伍隆起), a loyalist of the end of the Song, from Doudong. In the 1st year of Xiangxing of the Southern Song (1278), when the Yuan troops came south and the Song emperor retreated to Yashan (崖山), he led the villagers to the emperor's aid and gave all his family's wealth to the cause; he was later assassinated. His tomb is on Huangniu Lache Hill (黄牛拉车山), about seven kilometers southeast of Taicheng, commonly called Xiangtoufen (香头坟), and is a key cultural relic protection site of Taishan City.^[1]
• Wu Hanchi (伍汉持), a member of the House of Representatives of the first National Assembly of the Republic; later arrested and killed by Yuan Shikai.^[1]
• Wu Lien-teh (Wu Liande, 伍连德), public health expert, founder of China's port quarantine service.^[1]
• Wu Zhimei (伍智梅), formerly a member of the Central Executive Committee of the Kuomintang and a member of the Legislative Yuan.^[1]
• Wu Qiyuan (伍启元), formerly first deputy director of the United Nations Technical Assistance Administration.^[1]
• Ng Poon Chew (Wu Panzhao, 伍盘照), from Sijiu, formerly vice consul at the consulate in San Francisco.^[1]