A Chinese kin, lineage or sometimes rendered as clan, is a patrilineal and patrilocal group of related
Chinese people with a common
surname
In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community.
Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...
sharing a common ancestor and, in many cases, an
ancestral home.
Description
Chinese kinship tend to be strong in southern China, reinforced by ties to an ancestral village, common property, and often a common spoken
Chinese dialect unintelligible to people outside the village. Kinship structures tend to be weaker in northern China, with
clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship
and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, mea ...
members that do not usually reside in the same village nor share property.
''Zupu''—the genealogy book
A ''zupu'' () is a Chinese kin register or
genealogy book
A genealogy book or register is used in Asia and Europe to record the family history of ancestors.
Greater China
It is the Chinese tradition to record family members in a book, including every male born in the family, who they are married to, ...
, which contains stories of the kin's origins, male lineage and illustrious members. The register is usually updated regularly by the eldest person in the extended family, who hands on this responsibility to the next generation. The "updating" of one's ''zupu'' () is a very important task in Chinese tradition, and can be traced back thousands of years. After several generations, the local clan lineage will often publish a compendium of these zupus. The overwhelming majority of zupus remain in private hands, though a large number may be found in the
Peking University
Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education.
Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charte ...
,
Shanghai Library,
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
and
Tōyō Bunko.
Chinese lineage associations
Chinese lineage associations, also kinship or ancestral associations ( or ), are a type of
social
Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not.
Etymology
The word "social" derives from ...
relationship institutions found in
Han Chinese
The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive v ...
ethnic groups and the fundamental unit of
Chinese ancestral religion. They gather people who share the same
surname
In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community.
Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...
belonging to the same kin, who often have the same geographical origin (
ancestral home), and therefore the same patron
deities
A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater ...
. They aren't seen as distinct from the Chinese kin itself, but rather as its corporate form. These institutions and their corporeal manifestations are also known as lineage churches or kinship churches (; ), or, mostly on the scholarly level, as
Confucian churches, although this term has principally other different meanings.
Chinese kinship associations are the corporate forms of kins and the fundamental unit of
Chinese ancestral religion. They provide ''
guanxi'' (social network) to members and they build and manage
ancestral shrine
An ancestral shrine, hall or temple ( or , vi, Nhà thờ họ; Chữ Hán: 家祠户), also called lineage temple, is a temple dedicated to deified ancestors and progenitors of surname lineages or families in the Chinese tradition. Ancestra ...
s or temples dedicated to the worship of the
progenitor
In genealogy, the progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; german: Stammvater or ''Ahnherr'') is the – sometimes legendary – founder of a family, line of descent, clan or tribe, noble house, or ethnic group..
Ebenda''Ahnherr:''"Stammvater eines ...
s of the kins as their congregational centers, where they perform
rite Rite may refer to:
* Ritual, an established ceremonious act
* Rite of passage, a ceremonious act associated with social transition
Religion
* Rite (Christianity), a sacred ritual or liturgical tradition in various Christian denominations
* Cath ...
s of unity.
A lineage is a ''corporation'', in the sense that members feel to belong to the same body, are highly conscious of their group identity, and derive benefits from jointly owned property and shared resources. Benefit derives from the surplus income of ancestral shrines and homes, which is reinvested by the managers or shared out in yearly dividends.
[Watson, 1982. p. 600] Benefit of belonging to a lineage can also be measured in terms of protection and patronage.
Ancestral temples also support local schools and engage in
charitable work
The practice of charity is the voluntary giving of help to those in need, as a humanitarian act, unmotivated by self-interest. There are a number of philosophies about charity, often associated with religion.
Etymology
The word ''charity'' or ...
.
Different lineages may develop through the opposite processes of fusion and segmentation.
[Watson, 1982. pp. 604-609] They can also be dispersed and fragmented into "multi-lineage areas" or concentrated in one place, or "single-lineage area".
Ancestral shrine
Ancestral temples or shrines are the congregation places of lineage associations, by whom they are built and managed. These temples are devoted to the worship of the
progenitor
In genealogy, the progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; german: Stammvater or ''Ahnherr'') is the – sometimes legendary – founder of a family, line of descent, clan or tribe, noble house, or ethnic group..
Ebenda''Ahnherr:''"Stammvater eines ...
s of a certain kin, where the kin members meet and perform
rites of unity and banquets.
[Watson, 1982. pp. 595-597]
Variations
Consort kinship
In Imperial times, a
consort kin was a kin with special status due to its connection with an emperor. Throughout Chinese history, consort kins have exercised great power at various times. There have been several usurpations of power by consorts, the most notable being the
Han Dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
's
Empress Dowager Lü
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...
(), the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
's
Empress Wu (), and the
Qing Dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
's
Empress Dowager Cixi (). The Han Dynasty usurper
Wang Mang
Wang Mang () (c. 45 – 6 October 23 CE), courtesy name Jujun (), was the founder and the only emperor of the short-lived Chinese Xin dynasty. He was originally an official and consort kin of the Han dynasty and later seized the th ...
was a nephew of the
Grand Empress Dowager Wang.
Qing period
During the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
, the imperial government encouraged Chinese kins to take up some quasi-governmental functions such as those involving social welfare and primary education.
See also
*
Chinese folk religion
Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...
*
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a Religious Confucianism, religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, ...
*
Chinese ancestral worship
*
Ancestral shrine
An ancestral shrine, hall or temple ( or , vi, Nhà thờ họ; Chữ Hán: 家祠户), also called lineage temple, is a temple dedicated to deified ancestors and progenitors of surname lineages or families in the Chinese tradition. Ancestra ...
&
Ancestor tablets
A spirit tablet, memorial tablet, or ancestral tablet, is a placard used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. The name of the deity or past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet. With origins in tra ...
*
Chinese surname
Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia. Written Chinese names begin with surnames, unlik ...
—
Hundred Family Surnames
*
Chinese lineage associations
*
Ancestral home
*
Guanxi
*
Kongsi
Kongsi () is a Hokkien transcription term meaning "company", especially businesses which have been incorporated. However, the word has other meanings under different historical contexts. ''Kongsi'' were most commonly known as Chinese social orga ...
*
Xungen movement
Literary movements
Chinese literary schools and movements
1980s establishments in China
The ''xúngēn'' movement () is a cultural and literary movement in mainland China emphasizing local and minority cultures. It began in 1980s. Its premi ...
, the contemporary reconstruction of lineages in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
*
Zupu
A Chinese kin, lineage or sometimes rendered as clan, is a patrilineal and patrilocal group of related Chinese people with a common surname sharing a common ancestor and, in many cases, an ancestral home.
Description
Chinese kinship tend to be ...
References
Citations
Sources
*
*
*
External links
Genealogy of clans of the indigenous people of Hong Kong{{in lang, zh
Chinese culture
Chinese clans
Kinship and descent