Baixing

Baixing (Chinese: 百姓; pinyin: bǎixìng; lit. 'hundred surnames') or lao baixing (Chinese: 老百姓; lit. 'old hundred surnames') is a traditional Chinese term, meaning "the people" or "commoners."^[1]^[2] The word "lao" (Chinese: 老; lit. 'old') is often added as a prefix before "baixing".^[3]

A confederation of tribes living along the Yellow River were the ancestors of what later became the Han ethnic group in China.^[4]^[5] Several large tribes, including the Huangdi tribes (Chinese: 黄帝族), Yandi tribes (Chinese: 炎帝族), and the Yi tribes, formed an alliance that consisted of roughly 100 tribes. This alliance is the origin of the Baixing, or the "hundred surnames."

Around 2,000 Han Chinese surnames are currently in use, but 19 of these surnames are used by about half of the Han Chinese people. About 87% of the population share 100 surnames.^[6]^[7]

^ Gracie, Carrie (October 18, 2012). "Old 100 names: Witnesses of China's history". BBC News. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
^ Lee, Philip (June 2003). 250 Essential Chinese Characters for Everyday Use. # Publisher: Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-8048-3359-2. Archived from the original on 2022-10-12. Retrieved 2021-04-14.
^ "Blog: New dawn for Chinese activism". SBS News. August 26, 2013. Archived from the original on October 12, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
^ Cioffi-Revilla, Claudio; Lai, David (1995). "War and Politics in Ancient China, 2700 BC to 722 BC". The Journal of Conflict Resolution. 39 (3): 471–72. doi:10.1177/0022002795039003004. S2CID 156043981.
^ Guo, Shirong; Feng, Lisheng (1997). "Chinese Minorities". In Selin, Helaine (ed.). Encyclopaedia of the history of science, technology and medicine in non-western cultures. Dordrecht: Kluwer. p. 197. ISBN 978-0-79234066-9. During the Warring Stares (475 BC–221 BC), feudalism developed and the Huaxia nationality grew out of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou nationalities in the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River. The Han evolved from the Huaxia.
^ Du, Ruofu (June 1986). "Surnames in China / 中国的姓氏". Journal of Chinese Linguistics. 14 (2): 315–328. JSTOR 23767123.
^ Emma Woo Louie (2008). Chinese American Names: Tradition and Transition. McFarland & Co. p. 35. ISBN 978-0786438778. Archived from the original on 2022-10-12. Retrieved 2021-01-02.

[1] Gracie, Carrie (October 18, 2012). "Old 100 names: Witnesses of China's history". BBC News. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2021.

[2] Lee, Philip (June 2003). 250 Essential Chinese Characters for Everyday Use. # Publisher: Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-8048-3359-2. Archived from the original on 2022-10-12. Retrieved 2021-04-14.

[3] "Blog: New dawn for Chinese activism". SBS News. August 26, 2013. Archived from the original on October 12, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2021.

[4] Cioffi-Revilla, Claudio; Lai, David (1995). "War and Politics in Ancient China, 2700 BC to 722 BC". The Journal of Conflict Resolution. 39 (3): 471–72. doi:10.1177/0022002795039003004. S2CID 156043981.

[sel97-197-5] Guo, Shirong; Feng, Lisheng (1997). "Chinese Minorities". In Selin, Helaine (ed.). Encyclopaedia of the history of science, technology and medicine in non-western cultures. Dordrecht: Kluwer. p. 197. ISBN 978-0-79234066-9. During the Warring Stares (475 BC–221 BC), feudalism developed and the Huaxia nationality grew out of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou nationalities in the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River. The Han evolved from the Huaxia.

[du-6] Du, Ruofu (June 1986). "Surnames in China / 中国的姓氏". Journal of Chinese Linguistics. 14 (2): 315–328. JSTOR 23767123.

[7] Emma Woo Louie (2008). Chinese American Names: Tradition and Transition. McFarland & Co. p. 35. ISBN 978-0786438778. Archived from the original on 2022-10-12. Retrieved 2021-01-02.

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