Guan () is a

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, unlike the ...

. Guan is 394th in the

Hundred Family Surnames The ''Hundred Family Surnames'' (), commonly known as ''Bai Jia Xing'', also translated as ''Hundreds of Chinese Surnames'', is a classic Chinese text composed of common Chinese surnames. An unknown author compiled the book during the Song dy ...

. In

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, the surname is

romanised Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

as Kwan in Cantonese. In

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, the

Wade–Giles Wade–Giles () is a romanization system for Mandarin Chinese. It developed from a system produced by Thomas Francis Wade, during the mid-19th century, and was given completed form with Herbert A. Giles's '' Chinese–English Dictionary'' o ...

spelling Kuan is used. In

Macao Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

, the surname is as Kuan due to the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

influence. In many

overseas Chinese Overseas Chinese () refers to people of Chinese birth or ethnicity who reside outside Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. Terminology () or ''Hoan-kheh'' () in Hokkien, refe ...

communities, both spellings, Kuan and Kwan, as well as Quan, are common. It is also a Vietnamese surname that uses the same character, romanised as

Quan Quán is the Pinyin romanization of the Chinese family names / and , as well as a customary spelling of (pinyin: Guān). All written forms of the name are rare enough that they do not appear in the list of the 100 most common Chinese surnames. ...

. It is also a Japanese surname, Seki ( ja, 関), that uses the same character. The Vietnamese surname, Quan and the Japanese surname, Seki, was derived from the same Chinese character as the Chinese surname (The Japanese

Kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...

関 is a

Shinjitai are the simplified forms of kanji used in Japan since the promulgation of the Tōyō Kanji List in 1946. Some of the new forms found in ''shinjitai'' are also found in Simplified Chinese characters, but ''shinjitai'' is generally not as extensiv ...

of the Chinese character 關).

Origin and timeline

A number of groups in different geographic areas are believed to have shared the surname in history. *Guan(关 or 關) - meaning is City Gate, or Close the City Gate - originally name for an official, then became a surname. *During the 23rd century BCE, Dongfu (董父) was a descendant of the ruler Shuan (叔安) in

Chifeng Chifeng ( zh, s=赤峰市), also known as Ulanhad ( mn, (Улаанхад хот), ''Ulaɣanqada qota'', , "red cliff"), is a prefecture-level city in Southeastern Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. It borders Xilin Gol League to the ...

within the old

Rehe Province Rehe (), also romanized as Jehol, was a former Chinese special administrative region and province. Administration Rehe was north of the Great Wall, west of Manchuria, and east of Mongolia. Its capital and largest city was Chengde. The second ...

of the Khitan state. Dongfu married a daughter of Emperor Yao's tribe, using the surname Dong (董), which later became the surname Kwan (關). *In 1650 BCE, during the

Xia Dynasty The Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In tradi ...

Guan Longfeng Guan may refer to: * Guan (surname), several similar Chinese surnames ** Guān, Chinese surname * Guan (state), ancient Chinese city-state * Guan (bird), any of a number of bird species of the family Cracidae, of South and Central America * Guan ( ...

(關龍逢) was an officer of

Jie of Xia King Jie (; traditionally 1728–1675 BC) was the 17th and last ruler of the Xia dynasty of China. He is traditionally regarded as a tyrant and oppressor who brought about the collapse of a dynasty.劉煒/著. 002(2002) Chinese civilization in a n ...

's reign. *In 643 BCE, during the

Zhou Dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...

, near

Mount Xiao Mount Xiao or Mount Yao () is a range of mountains in western Henan, China north of the Luo River and south of Sanmenxia. Major peaks include Qīnggǎngfēng (青崗峰; 1903 m) and Guānyúnshān (冠雲山; 1666 m). The range is pa ...

within the nation of Jin, the Ji (姬) family used the surname of Dongguan (東關) with region name

Dongguan Dongguan (; ) is a prefecture-level city in central Guangdong Province, China. An important industrial city in the Pearl River Delta, Dongguan borders the provincial capital of Guangzhou to the north, Huizhou to the northeast, Shenzhen to the s ...

(東關). In China it is common for clans possessing the same surname to live in a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

together, with their surname designating the name of the village. Later, the Dongguan (東關) family branched into two surnames:

Dǒng Dǒng (; Cantonese: Tung/Tong) is a surname of Chinese origin. ''DONG'' is from a Chinese character that also means ‘to supervise’ or ‘to manage’. The story goes that in the 23rd Century BC, an adviser to the emperor Shun was given this su ...

(東), and Guan (關). Dongguan Wu (東關五) was an officer of Jin. *In 604 BCE, during the Zhou Dynasty, an officer named Yin Xi (尹喜) is reported to have taken the name Guan Yin (關尹) as his name in public office, designating 關 as his surname. Subsequent generations continued to use 關 as their surname. *The surname 關 has also been widely adopted by various non-Chinese ethnic groups from both southern and northern China, such as the Zhuang, De'ang,

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...

ian and Manchurian peoples. *Around 1080 CE, the surname 關 arrives in the province of

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

Xinhui Xinhui, alternately romanized as Sunwui and also known as Kuixiang, is an urban district of Jiangmen in Guangdong, China. It grew from a separate city founded at the confluence of the Tan and West Rivers. It has a population of about 735,50 ...

, five generations later at

Kaiping Kaiping (), alternately romanized in Cantonese as Hoiping, is a county-level city in Guangdong Province, China. It is located ín the western section of the Pearl River Delta and administered as part of the prefecture-level city of Jiangmen. ...

(Hoiping) in Guangdong province. *During the

Jin dynasty (1115–1234) The Jin dynasty (, ; ) or Jin State (; Jurchen: Anchun Gurun), officially known as the Great Jin (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 1115 and 1234. Its name is sometimes written as Kin, Jurchen Jin, Jinn, or Chin in ...

, the surname 關 has also been founded by the

Jurchen people Jurchen (Manchu: ''Jušen'', ; zh, 女真, ''Nǚzhēn'', ) is a term used to collectively describe a number of East Asian Tungusic-speaking peoples, descended from the Donghu people. They lived in the northeast of China, later known as Manchu ...

of the Guaerjia. *Near the end of the 19th century (1880s), population pressure on the limited arable land in Kaiping county, mainly along the Tan river, induces the rural poor 關 to emigrate overseas, largely (~70%) to North America and rest to Southeast Asia.

Historical figures

Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...

(關羽, d. 220 CE), general of

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...

era; aka Kuan Kung in Chinese folklore. *

Guan Ping Guan Ping () (died January or February 220) was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Life Guan Ping was the eldest son of Guan Yu. Little about him is documented in historical recor ...

(關平), Guan Yu's son, also a general of

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

Guan Xing Guan Xing ( third century), courtesy name Anguo, was an official of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. History He was the second son of Guan Yu and a younger brother of Guan Ping. Little information about Guan Xing is ...

(關興), son of Guan Yu and younger brother of Guan Ping, also a general of Shu Han *

Guan Bo Guan Bo (關播) (719 – February 4, 797), courtesy name Wuyuan (務元), was an official of the Chinese Tang Dynasty, serving as a chancellor during the reign of Emperor Dezong. Background Guan Bo was born in 719, during the reign of Emperor ...

(關播) official and chancellor of the Tang Dynasty *

Guan Tong Guan Tong () (c. 906-960) was a Chinese painter of the Northern Landscape style during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period and early Song dynasty from the city of Chang'an.''中国绘画全集'', Vol 2, p. 6. He was a pupil of Jing Hao, an ...

(關仝, c. 906–960), Chinese landscape painter during the

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen conc ...

Guan Hanqing Guan Hanqing ( 1241–1320), sobriquet "the Oldman of the Studio" (齋叟 Zhāisǒu), was a notable Chinese playwright and poet in the Yuan Dynasty. He has been described as among the most prolific and highly regarded dramatists of the Yuan pe ...

(關漢卿, c. 1241–1320), playwright and poet in the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fifth ...

Guan Tianpei Guan Tianpei (; 1781 – 26 February 1841) was a Chinese admiral of the Qing dynasty who served in the First Opium War. His Chinese title was "Commander-in-Chief of Naval Forces". In 1838, he established courteous relations with British Rear-Admi ...

(關天培, 1781–1841), Chinese admiral of 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 ...

, who served in the

First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...

Modern people

Guan Zilan Guan Zilan (; January 1903 – 30 June 1986), also known as Violet Kwan, was a Chinese avant-garde painter. She was one of the first artists to introduce Fauvism to China, and was known for applying Western painting style to Chinese traditional s ...

(关紫兰, 1903–1986), Chinese avant-garde painter * Guan Linzheng (關麟徵, 1905–1980), Kuomintang general *

Kwan Tak-hing Kwan Tak-hing, MBE (27 June 1905 – 28 June 1996) was a Hong Kong martial artist and actor best known for his portrayal of martial artist folk hero Wong Fei-hung in at least 77 films, between the 1940s and the 1980s. No one else in cinema his ...

(關德興, 1905–1996), Hong Kong actor famous for playing the role of Wong Fei-hung *

Kwan Hoi-san Herman Kwan Hoi-San () (born Kwan Ming-kok; October 23, 1925 – September 11, 2006) was a Hong Kong actor. His English name was Herman Kwan. Kwan started off as a Cantonese opera actor in street theatre before joining New Voice Opera Troupe (� ...

(關海山, 1925–2006), Hong Kong actor *

Yu-chien Kuan Yu-chien Kuan or Guan Yuqian (; 18 February 1931 – 22 November 2018) was a Chinese-born German sinologist, writer and translator. The son of a high-ranking Chinese Communist Party official, he was denounced as a "rightist" and persecuted dur ...

(关愚谦, 1931–2018), Chinese-born German sinologist, writer, and translator *

Nancy Kwan Nancy Kwan Ka-shen (; born May 19, 1939) is a Chinese-American actress, philanthropist, and former dancer. In addition to her personality and looks, her career was benefited by Hollywood's casting of more Asian roles in the 1960s, especially in ...

(關家蒨, b. 1939), Chinese-American actress known for her Hollywood films *

Michael Kwan Michael Kwan Ching-kit is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer previously with the Philips label (the brand Polygram was not adopted until later in Hong Kong), and later with EMI. His back catalogue (1986–1988) continues to be published by Universal Mu ...

(關正傑, b. 1949), Hong Kong Cantopop singer *

Jean Quan Lai Jean Quan (born October 21, 1949) is an American politician that served as the 49th mayor of Oakland, California from 2011 to 2015. She previously served as City Council member for Oakland's 4th District. Upon inauguration on January 3, 201 ...

(關麗珍, b. 1949), American politician *

Stanley Kwan Stanley Kwan (traditional Chinese: 關錦鵬; simplified Chinese: 关锦鹏); born 9 October 1957) is a Hong Kong film director and producer. Kwan landed a job at TVB after receiving a mass communications degree at Hong Kong Baptist College. ...

(關錦鵬, b. 1957), Hong Kong director and producer * Susanna Kwan (關菊英, b. 1958), Hong Kong singer and actress * Betty Kwan Chinn (關惠群), Chinese-American philanthropist, 2010 U.S. Presidential Citizens Medalist * Kwan Chi Lam (關之琳, b. 1962), Hong Kong actress *

Esther Kwan Esther Kwan Wing-ho (), born 16 July 1964 is a Hong Kong retired actress formerly contracted to TVB and ATV. Career Kwan began her acting career after high school at ATV from 1988 to 1993. She moved over to TVB in 1993 and has been at the bro ...

(關詠荷, b. 1964), Hong Kong actress *

Shirley Kwan Shirley Kwan, Milo Kwan, Bik Luik Kwan, Kwan Suk'E, or Kwan Suk Yee (, born 15 August 1966) is an influential Cantopop singer from Hong Kong. Kwan first shot to fame in 1989 with the hit, " Happy Are Those in Love" () and was widely popular throu ...

(關淑怡, b. 1966), Hong Kong Cantopop singer *

Jonathan Ke Quan Ke Huy Quan (born August 20, 1971), also known as Jonathan Ke Quan (), is a Vietnam-born American actor and stunt choreographer. Quan played Short Round in ''Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'' (1984) and Data in ''The Goonies'' (1985)''.'' ...

(關繼威, b. 1971), American actor and stunt coordinator *

Jade Kwan Kwan Wai-Man (born 31 July 1979), better known professionally as Jade Kwan Sum-Yin (), is a Cantopop singer and philanthropist based in Hong Kong. Originally from Vancouver, she entered the music industry after winning the 1999 New Talent Singing ...

(關心妍, b. 1979), Hong Kong Cantopop singer *

Julia Kwan Julia Kwan is a Canadians, Canadian screenwriter, director, and occasional producer of her own short and feature films. She has brought a keen sense of the Chinese-Canadian cultural experience to her films. Several of the films were made in conjun ...

, Canadian screenwriter and director *

Michelle Kwan Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980) is a retired competitive figure skater and diplomat serving as United States Ambassador to Belize. In figure skating Kwan is a two-time Olympic medalist (silver in 1998, bronze in 2002), a five-time ...

(關穎珊, b. 1980), American competitive figure skater, two-time Olympic medalist, five-time World Champion *

Kelvin Kwan Kelvin Kwan (born 24 March 1983) is a cantopop singer from Go East, a subdivision of Universal Music. Family background Born into a wealthy family, Kwan was raised in Canada. His father is Hong Kong record producer William Kwan, an executive f ...

(關楚耀, b. 1983), Hong Kong Cantopop singer *

Guan Xiaotong Guan Xiaotong (; born 17 September 1997) is a Chinese actress and singer of Manchu descent. She is known for her roles in films '' The Left Ear'' and ''Shadow''; and the television series '' To Be a Better Man''. From an early age, her family e ...

(关晓彤, b. 1997), Chinese actress * Guan Tianlang (關天朗, b. 1998), Chinese golfer *Lily Kwan (关莉莉), Canadian model and newscaster on

Naked News ''Naked News'' is a Canadian news and entertainment program owned by Naked Broadcasting Network. It features nude female news presenters reading news bulletins derived from news wires. The show's production studio is located in Toronto. There a ...

Kevin Kwan Kevin Kwan (born ) is a Singapore-born American novelist and writer of satirical novels ''Crazy Rich Asians'', ''China Rich Girlfriend'', and '' Rich People Problems''. His latest book, '' Sex and Vanity'', was released in June 2020. In 2014, ...

, Singaporean novelist * Kwan Swee Lian, Malaysian chef and businessperson * Steven Kwan, American professional baseball player

Japanese people with the surname Seki (関)

Historical figures

Seki Takakazu , Selin, Helaine. (1997). ''Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures,'' p. 890 also known as ,Selin, was a Japanese mathematician and author of the Edo period. Seki laid foundations for the subs ...

(関孝和, 1642–1708), mathematician in the Edo period

Notable modern people

Tsutomu Seki is a Japanese astronomer and discoverer of minor planets and comets, born in Kōchi, Japan. Career Tsutomu Seki is the Director of the Geisei Observatory in Kōchi, and in charge of the Comet Section of the Oriental Astronomical Associatio ...

(関勉, b. 1930), Japanese astronomer who discovered large numbers of comets and asteroids *

Tomokazu Seki is a Japanese voice actor and singer. He has previously worked with Haikyō. He is honorary president of and affiliated with Atomic Monkey and the chairman of theater company HeroHero Q. He is a special lecturer at Japan Newart College. Caree ...

(関智一, b. 1972), Japanese voice actor

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guan (surname) Chinese-language surnames Individual Chinese surnames