Jin is the

Hanyu pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...

transliteration of a number of

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 ...

s. The most common one, Jīn , literally means "gold" and is 29th in the list of "

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 dyn ...

". As of 2006, it is ranked the 64th most common Chinese surname and is sometimes transliterated as Chin. The other, less common, surnames that are "Jin" in pinyin include Jìn (/) and Jìn ().

金 (Jīn)

Mythology

Jin is an ancient surname, dating back over 4,000 years. It was first mentioned during the period ruled by the

Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch or by his Chinese name Huangdi (), is a deity ('' shen'') in Chinese religion, one of the legendary Chinese sovereigns and culture heroes included among the mytho-historical Three Soverei ...

, a legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero, who is considered in

Chinese mythology Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature in the geographic area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology includes many varied myths from regional and cultural traditions. Much of t ...

to be the ancestor of all

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 va ...

. The legend behind the Jin surname is as follows:

The Yellow Emperor's son, Yi Zhi (
Shaohao Shaohao or Shao Hao ( "Lesser Brightness"), also known Jin Tian (金天), was a legendary Chinese sovereign. Shaohao is usually identified as a son of the Yellow Emperor. According to some traditions (for example the ''Book of Documents''), he is a ...
), eventually succeeded him. On the same day he was installed as leader, a golden
phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
flew down and perched on top of a house exactly opposite of where he sat. His followers reckoned it was an auspicious beginning. They decided to use gold as the emblem of their tribe. Yi Zhi was retitled Jin Tian Shi ("golden skies") by his people, and headed the Jin Tian Tribe. Their settlement was located in
Qufu Qufu ( ; ) is a city in southwestern Shandong province, East China. It is located about south of the provincial capital Jinan and northeast of the prefectural seat at Jining. Qufu has an area of 815 square kilometers, and a total population of ...
(presently Qufu city in
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
province). Yi Zhi died in 2515 BCE. Some of his descendants adopted Jin as their surnames and left off the words Tian Shi ("skies").

The surname also appeared in an area called

Pengcheng Xuzhou (徐州), also known as Pengcheng (彭城) in ancient times, is a major city in northwestern Jiangsu province, China. The city, with a recorded population of 9,083,790 at the 2020 census (3,135,660 of which lived in the built-up area ma ...

(now known as Tong Shan Xian) during the

Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

, from 206

BCE Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...

to 220BCE.

Origin of Surname Jīn (金)

Jin Midi Jin Midi (134–86 BC) (, courtesy name Wengshu (翁叔), formally Marquess Jing of Du (秺敬侯), was a foreign prince and a warrior of the Western Han Dynasty. He was a Hu (胡) "barbarian" from a kingdom in central Gansu area and ser ...

(金日磾) was with the

Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 20 ...

people during the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

and received the surname Jīn (金) from Emperor Wu. His father, Xiutu (休屠) was a general-feudal lord of the

Jin Xuan Jin Xuan (died 209), courtesy name Yuanji, was an official and minor warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Life Jin Xuan was a descendant of Jin Midi and was from Jingzhao Commandery (京兆郡; around present-day Xi ...

(金旋) and Jin Yi (金禕) were his descendants. *

Qiang people The Qiang people ( Qiangic: ''Rrmea''; ) are an ethnic group in China. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognised by the People's Republic of China, with a population of approximately 310,000 in 2000. They live mainly in a ...

use the surnames Jīn (金), Chang (羌),

Gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

(功), and Ju- Goo (俱). * Some of

Qian Liu Qian Liu (10 March 852Academia Sinica Chinese-Western Calendar Converter

's (錢鏐) descendants received the surname Jīn (金). * Jin was among the surnames granted to the

Kaifeng Jews The Kaifeng Jews ( zh, t=開封猶太族, p=Kāifēng Yóutàizú; he, יהדות קאיפנג ''Yahădūt Qāʾyfeng'') are members of a small community of descendants of Chinese Jews in Kaifeng, in the Henan province of China. In the early ...

by an unnamed

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

emperor. * During 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 ...

, the Chinese

Liu / ( or ) is an East Asian surname. pinyin: in Mandarin Chinese, in Cantonese. It is the family name of the Han dynasty emperors. The character originally meant 'kill', but is now used only as a surname. It is listed 252nd in the classic text ...

(劉) clan received the surname Jīn (金). Jīn Fuxiang (金覆祥). * Mongolian Ye (也) clan got the surname Jīn (金) during the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

Taiwanese aborigines Taiwanese may refer to: * Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien * Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa) * Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan * Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan * Taiwanese people, ...

received surname Jīn (金),

Zhang Zhang may refer to: Chinese culture, etc. * Zhang (surname) (張/张), common Chinese surname ** Zhang (surname 章), a rarer Chinese surname * Zhang County (漳县), of Dingxi, Gansu * Zhang River (漳河), a river flowing mainly in Henan * ''Zha ...

, amongst others, 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 ...

. *

Aisin Gioro The House of Aisin-Gioro was a Manchu clan that ruled the Later Jin dynasty (1616–1636), the Qing dynasty (1636–1912), and Manchukuo (1932–1945) in the history of China. Under the Ming dynasty, members of the Aisin Gioro clan served as c ...

clan got the surname Jīn (金), as "Aisin" means "gold" in

Manchu language Manchu (Manchu:, ) is a critically endangered East Asian Tungusic language native to the historical region of Manchuria in Northeast China. As the traditional native language of the Manchus, it was one of the official languages of the Qing dyn ...

, following the

fall of the Qing dynasty The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty, the Manchu people, Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of Chi ...

. * Jin uses the same character as the Korean surname, "Kim". Kim is Korea's most common surname and is also widely found amongst the

ethnic Koreans in China Koreans in China (), Korean Chinese (), Joseonjok, Chosŏnjok (), or Chaoxianzu (), are Chinese by nationality and are Koreans by ethnicity (with either full or partial Korean ancestry). A majority of the chaoxianzu are descendants of immigran ...

Notables with the surname 金

(金日磾) *

Jin Shengtan Jin Shengtan (; 1610?7 August 1661), former name Jin Renrui (), also known as Jin Kui (), was a Chinese editor, writer and critic, who has been called the champion of Vernacular Chinese literature. Biography The year of Jin's birth is unclear, ...

(金聖嘆) (born Jin Renrui 金人瑞) * Jin Yuelin (金岳霖) * Jin Di (金迪) * Jin Jing (金晶) *

Jin Fengling Jin Fengling (; born 20 November 1982) is a Chinese retired ice hockey forward. She was a member of the Chinese women's national ice hockey team from 2000 to 2013 and represented China at nine IIHF World Championships, three Asian Winter Game ...

(金鳳玲) * Jin Guliang (金古良), painter of the

Wu Shuang Pu ''Wu Shuang Pu'' () is a book of woodcut prints, first printed in 1694, early on in the Qing dynasty. This book contains the biographies and imagined portraits of 40 notable heroes and heroines from the Han Dynasty to the Song Dynasty, all acco ...

* Jin Jingdao (金敬道) * Jin Liqun (金立群) * Keyu Jin * Jin Luxian (金鲁贤), bishop of Shanghai *

Jin Xing Jin Xing (; born August 13, 1967) is a Chinese ballerina, modern dancer, choreographer, actress, founder and artistic director of the contemporary dance company Shanghai. She is a transgender celebrity. Early life Jin was born in 1967 in Shen ...

(金星) *

Jin Li Jin Li (; born 1963) is a Chinese geneticist and the vice-president of Fudan University.金力 (Jin ...

(金力) * Larry Wu-tai Chin *

Jin Renqing Jin Renqing (; 29 July 1944 – 28 August 2021) was a Chinese politician, member of the 16th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, serving as deputy chief of the Development Research Center of the State Council. He also served as fi ...

(金人慶) * Jin Yubo (金煜博) * Jin Zhiyang (金志扬) *

Elaine Jin Elaine Yan-ling (; born 15 December 1954), also known as Elaine Kam, is a Hong Kong–Taiwanese actress. She began her career in Taiwan in 1973 before moving to Hong Kong in 1981. She has been nominated seven times in the Hong Kong Film Award ...

(金燕玲) *

Ha Jin Jin Xuefei (; born February 21, 1956) is a Chinese-American poet and novelist using the pen name Ha Jin (). ''Ha'' comes from his favorite city, Harbin. His poetry is associated with the Misty Poetry movement. Early life Ha Jin was born in ...

(born Jin Xuefei 金雪飛) *

Jin Dong Jin Dong (, born 22 December 1976) is a Chinese actor. He is known for his television roles in ''Legend of Entrepreneurship'' (2012), '' The Disguiser'' (2015), '' Candle in the Tomb'' (2016), ''Surgeons'' (2017) and '' The First Half of My Life ...

* Jin Chen

Gina Jin Jin Chen (, born 5 September 1990), also known as Gina Jin, is a Chinese actress of Hui ethnicity. She is recognized for her role in the web dramas '' Wu Xin: The Monster Killer'' and '' Candle in the Tomb: Mu Ye Gui Shi''. Career Jin debuted w ...

(金晨), actress *

Jin Yuzhang Jin Yuzhang (, born 3 May 1942) is a Chinese civil servant, politician and former nobleman. He is the current head of the House of Aisin-Gioro, Chinese Monarchy's former ruling house. His father was Manchu nobleman Jin Youzhi, and he is a nephe ...

, of the Aisin-Gioro house *

Jin Yong Louis Cha Leung-yung (; 10 March 1924 – 30 October 2018), better known by his pen name Jin Yong (), pronounced "Gum Yoong" in Cantonese, was a Chinese wuxia (" martial arts and chivalry") novelist and essayist who co-founded the Hong Kong d ...

, penname used by Louis Cha *

Jin Boyang Jin Boyang (; ; born 3 October 1997) is a Chinese figure skater. He is a two-time World bronze medalist (2016–2017), the 2018 Four Continents champion, a two-time Four Continents silver medalist (2016, 2019), the 2017 Asian Winter Games s ...

Jin Shan Jin Shan (9 August 1911 – 7 July 1982), formerly known as Zhao Mo (), was a Chinese drama and film actor, and director. He served as a member of the Chinese Federation of Literary and Art Circles, vice chairman of the Chinese Dramatists Asso ...

Jin Sha (singer) Jin Sha (; born 14 March 1981), better known as Kym, is a Chinese singer and actress. She was born in Shanghai and can speak Mandarin, Shanghainese and English. Career Kym's career started with a role in the drama ''Sky'' () in 2003. In the sa ...

* Jin Sha (poet), Cheng Youshu *

Jin Shuren Jin Shuren (; c. 1883–1941) was a Chinese Xinjiang clique warlord who served as Governor of Xinjiang between 1928 and 1933. Biography Jin Shuren was born in Yongjing, Hezhou, Gansu. He graduated at the Gansu provincial academy and ...

Jin Youzhi Jin Youzhi (, 21 September 1918 – 10 April 2015), born Aisin-Gioro Puren, was a Chinese politician and historian. He was the head of the House of Aisin-Gioro, the ruling clan of the Qing dynasty, from 1994 until his death in 2015. He was the ...

Jin Qicong Jin Qicong or Aisin-Gioro Qicong (7 June 1918 – 10 April 2004) was a Chinese historian and linguist of Manchu ethnicity who is known for his studies of the Manchu and Jurchen languages. His works include the first modern dictionary of Jurche ...

* Kinsen (金川 Jin Chuan), the voice actor for Xiao in

Genshin Impact ''Genshin Impact'' is an action role-playing game developed and published by miHoYo. It was released for Android (operating system), Android, iOS, PlayStation 4, and Windows in 2020, on PlayStation 5 in 2021, and is set for release on Nintendo ...

Cultural works * Michelle Jin (米歇尔·金), professional bodybuilder *

The Untamed (TV series) ''The Untamed '' () is a 2019 Chinese television series adapted from the danmei novel ''Mo Dao Zu Shi'' by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu, starring Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo. It follows the adventures of two soulmate cultivators who travel to solve a series of ...

, features the Jin clan as one of the main groups in the series

Variants

* Chin, an alternate transliteration of Jin * Gyim, Kim in

Middle Chinese Middle Chinese (formerly known as Ancient Chinese) or the Qieyun system (QYS) is the historical variety of Chinese recorded in the '' Qieyun'', a rime dictionary first published in 601 and followed by several revised and expanded editions. The ...

* Kin in

Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...

and

Foochow Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute t ...

* Gam, Kam in

Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...

* Gim,

Kim Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese f ...

in Korea * Kim in Min Nan variations * Kim in

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

靳 (Jìn)

According to legend, Jìn () family name originated from

Zhu Rong Rong Zhu (Standard Chinese, ch: 茸主; born March 7, 2000) is a Chinese mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competed in the Lightweight (MMA), Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Of Tibetan people, Tib ...

. It was later a clan in the

Chu (state) Chu, or Ch'u in Wade–Giles romanization, (, Hanyu Pinyin: Chǔ, Old Chinese: ''*s-r̥aʔ'') was a Zhou dynasty vassal state. Their first ruler was King Wu of Chu in the early 8th century BCE. Chu was located in the south of the Zhou he ...

. Originally the name was Jian-Jin (篯), but was later changed to

Jian The ''jian'' (pronunciation （劍）, English approximation: ) is a double-edged straight sword used during the last 2,500 years in China. The first Chinese sources that mention the ''jian'' date to the 7th century BCE, during the Spring and ...

- Qian (錢) and Jìn (靳).

Notables with the surname 靳

Yue-Sai Kan Yue-Sai Kan () is an American, international television host and producer, successful entrepreneur, fashion icon, bestselling author and humanitarian. People magazine called her "the most famous woman in China" and Time magazine proclaimed her "th ...

(靳羽西) *

(Chinese: 靳东, born 1976), Chinese actor, known for his television roles in ''Legend of Entrepreneurship'' (2012) *

Jin Ye Jin Ye (; born November 28, 1988, in Shijiazhuang, Hebei) is a Chinese dancer, model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned as Miss Universe China in 2013 session and represented her country at the Miss Universe 2013 pageant in Russi ...

(靳烨; Jìn Yè; born 1988), Chinese dancer, model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned as Miss Universe * Jin Ruchao, (靳如超, 1960–2001) perpetrator of the Shijiazhuang bombings * Jin Zhun (靳準) (died 318), official of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao, who in 318 staged a coup against the Han Zhao emperor and his son-in-law * Empress Jin (靳皇后/金皇后) may refer to one of the following Chinese empresses: Jin Yueguang (靳月光) and Jin Yuehua (靳月華), two of Han Zhao emperor Liu Cong's *

Jin Yunpeng Jin Yunpeng (); ; 1877 – 30 January 1951) was a Chinese general and politician of the Warlord Era of the Republic of China. He served as both Minister of War and then Premier of China several times. His ascent to the Premiership was support ...

(靳云鹏; 1877–1951), Chinese general and politician *

Jin Hui Jin Hui (; born 10 March 1988), is a Chinese footballer who currently plays for Beijing Renhe in the China League One. Club career Jin Hui started his professional football career in July 2010 when he joined Beijing Baxy for the 2010 China Leagu ...

(Chinese: 靳辉; born 1988), Chinese footballer who plays for Beijing Renhe in the China League One *

Andrew Jin Daoyuan Andrew Jin Daoyuan (; 13 June 1929 – 20 November 2019) was a bishop of the Catholic Patriotic Association The Catholic Patriotic Association (), abbreviated CPA, is a state-sanctioned organization of Catholicism in the People's Republic of C ...

(Chinese: 靳道远; 1929–2019), bishop of the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association * Jin Guidi (靳贵第; 1915–1937), or Chin Kuai-Ti, Chinese soldier and boxer * Jin Qi (靳琪; born 1997), Chinese footballer who plays for Inner Mongolia Caoshangfei in the China League *

Jin Xi (Han) Jin Xi () was a general under Emperor Liu Bang. In 209 BC, Jin "joined in the attack on Qin forces, defeating Li You", for which Jin received various titles and honors from Liu Bang including being named Commandant of Cavalry.Michael Loewe, ''A Bi ...

, (靳歙), general under Emperor Liu Bang who in 209 BC, "joined in the attack on Qin forces, defeating Li You" *

Empress Jin (Yin) Empress Jin (, personal name unknown) was briefly an empress of the Xiongnu-led Chinese Han Zhao dynasty. Her husband was Liu Can (Emperor Yin). She was Jin Zhun's daughter. It is not known what year she married Liu Can, but when he served as ...

, (靳皇后, personal name unknown), briefly an empress of the Chinese/Xiongnu state Han Zhao, wife of Liu Can (Emperor Yin)

晋/晉 (Jìn)

Jìn ( family name originate from Táng Shū Yú (唐叔虞) the brother of

King Wu of Zhou King Wu of Zhou () was the first king of the Zhou dynasty of ancient China. The chronology of his reign is disputed but is generally thought to have begun around 1046 BC and ended three years later in 1043 BC. King Wu's ancestral name was ...

. He founded the state of Jin and his later descendants used the surname Jìn (晋).

Notables with the surname 晋

Jin Xiaomei Jin Xiaomei (; born January 1, 1983, in Weifang, Shandong) is a female Chinese football (soccer) player who competed in the 2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), of ...

(晋小梅)

References

{{surname, Jin Chinese-language surnames Multiple Chinese surnames