Lü () is the

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

(Lǚ with the tone

diacritic A diacritic (also diacritical mark, diacritical point, diacritical sign, or accent) is a glyph added to a letter or to a basic glyph. The term derives from the Ancient Greek (, "distinguishing"), from (, "to distinguish"). The word ''diacriti ...

) and

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 ...

romanisation of the Chinese surname written in simplified character and in traditional character. It is the 47th most common surname in China, shared by 5.6 million people, or 0.47% of the Chinese population as of 2002. It is especially common in Shandong and

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

provinces. The surname originated from the ancient State of Lü.

Lü Shang Jiang Ziya ( century BC – century BC), also known by several other names, was a Chinese noble who helped kings Wen and Wu of Zhou overthrow the Shang in ancient China. Following their victory at Muye, he continued to serv ...

( fl. 11th century BC), the founder of the

State of Qi Qi, or Ch'i in Wade–Giles romanization, was a state of the Zhou dynasty-era in ancient China, variously reckoned as a march, duchy, and independent kingdom. Its capital was Linzi, located in present-day Shandong. Qi was founded sh ...

, was the first person known to have the surname. It is 22nd on 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 ...

'', contained in the verse 何呂施張 (He Lü Shi Zhang).

Romanization

Lü is the standard

spelling of the Chinese character 吕/呂. However, when input of the umlaut is not possible, the surname is commonly romanized as Lu or Lv (v being the pinyin input shorthand for ü). On 31 October 2011, the National Standardization Committee of China issued ''The Chinese phonetic alphabet spelling rules for Chinese names'', which stipulates that Lü should be spelled Lyu in such situation. The rule came into effect on 1 February 2012. 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 ar ...

the name is commonly romanized as Lui.

Origins

Jiang clan

The surname Lü originated from the Jiang 姜 clan, which is said to have descended from the legendary

Yan Emperor The Yan Emperor () or the Flame Emperor was a legendary ancient Chinese ruler in pre-dynastic times. Modern scholarship has identified the Sheep's Head Mountains (''Yángtóu Shān'') just north of Baoji in Shaanxi Province as his homeland and ...

. According to the

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

genealogy text ''

Yuanhe Xing Zuan The ''Yuanhe Xingzuan'' () is an imperial Tang dynasty register of the genealogies of China's prominent families. It was compiled by Lin Bao (林寶), on the order of Emperor Xianzong (reigned 805–820), whose era name was Yuanhe. The book was c ...

'', a branch of the Jiang clan was enfeoffed at the State of Lü by

Yu the Great Yu the Great (大禹) was a legendary king in ancient China who was famed for his introduction of flood control, his establishment of the Xia dynasty which inaugurated dynastic rule in China, and his upright moral character. He figures promine ...

, the legendary founder of 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 tradit ...

. The Jiang clan was a close ally and frequent marriage partner of the Ji clan, which conquered the

Shang Dynasty The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and ...

to establish 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 ...

in 1046/45 BC. Lü Shang, also known as Jiang Ziya, was the first person known in history to have the surname Lü. A member of the Lü lineage of the Jiang clan, he was a top general who led the Zhou army to decisively defeat the Shang at the historic

Battle of Muye The Battle of Muye () or Battle of the Mu was a battle fought in ancient China between the rebel Zhou state and the reigning Shang dynasty. The Zhou army, led by Wu of Zhou, defeated the defending army of King Di Xin of Shang at Muye and capt ...

. Another important general during the battle, Lü Ta, was also from the Lü lineage of the Jiang clan. After the establishment of Zhou, Lü Shang was enfeoffed at the

in modern Shandong province, which later became one of the major states of the Spring and Autumn and

Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

s. Lü Shang, posthumously named Duke Tai of Qi, is considered an original ancestor of the Lü surname. During the

Western Zhou The Western Zhou ( zh, c=, p=Xīzhōu; c. 1045 BC – 771 BC) was a royal dynasty of China and the first half of the Zhou dynasty. It began when King Wu of Zhou overthrew the Shang dynasty at the Battle of Muye and ended when the Quanrong n ...

period, the State of Lü was located near the Zhou court in modern

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), N ...

. Inscriptions on many excavated bronzes from the period show that the Lü lineage played an active role in the Zhou court. Several people named Lü, including Lü Xing, Lü Gang, Lü Bo, and Lü Fuyu, were separately recorded to have participated in military campaigns, sometimes accompanying the Zhou king. The state was later relocated to the Nanyang basin, in present-day southern

, during the late Western Zhou. During the Spring and Autumn period, Lü was annexed by the State of Chu, a rising power in the south. Many people of Lü adopted the name of their former state as their surname.

Ji clan

A different, later origin of Lü was from the Wei (魏) lineage of the Ji (姬) surname. During the Spring and Autumn period,

Prince Chong'er Duke Wen of Jin (697–628BC), born Chong'er (literally "Double Ears"), was a scion of the royal house of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. He famously endured a long period of exile from his realm before finally bei ...

was exiled from the Jin and one of his followers was Wei Wuzi (魏武子). Chong'er later ascended the throne of Jin in 636 BC and became the

Hegemon Hegemony (, , ) is the political, economic, and military predominance of one state over other states. In Ancient Greece (8th BC – AD 6th ), hegemony denoted the politico-military dominance of the ''hegemon'' city-state over other city-states. ...

of China. Wei Wuzi's son, Wei Qi (魏锜) was given the fiefs of Lü and Chu (厨). Many of his descendants changed their surname to Lü.

Later adoption

During the

Xianbei The Xianbei (; ) were a Proto-Mongolic ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. They originated from the Donghu people who splintered into th ...

Northern Wei dynasty, Emperor Xiaowen (reigned 467–499 AD) implemented a drastic policy of

sinicization Sinicization, sinofication, sinification, or sinonization (from the prefix , 'Chinese, relating to China') is the process by which non-Chinese societies come under the influence of Chinese culture, particularly the language, societal norms, cul ...

, ordering his own people to adopt Chinese surnames. The Chilü (叱吕) clan of Xianbei adopted Lü as their surname. The Xianbei people have since completely assimilated into the

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 distinctiv ...

. People from many other

ethnic minorities The term 'minority group' has different usages depending on the context. According to its common usage, a minority group can simply be understood in terms of demographic sizes within a population: i.e. a group in society with the least number o ...

in China have also adopted Lü as their surname, including the Manchu, Li, Tu,

Mongols 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 membe ...

, Tujia, and the

Koreans Koreans ( South Korean: , , North Korean: , ; see names of Korea) are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. Koreans mainly live in the two Korean nation states: North Korea and South Korea (collectively and simply re ...

Notable people

(11th century BC),

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 ...

general and founder of the

* Duke Ding of Qi (Lü Ji; c. 10th century BC), second recorded ruler of Qi * Lü Buwei (291?–235 BC), Chancellor of Qin, sponsored the creation of the ''Lüshi Chunqiu'' *

Empress Lü Empress (Dowager) Lü Zhi (241–18 August 180 BC), commonly known as Empress Lü () and formally Empress Gao of Han (), was the empress consort of Gaozu, the founding emperor of the Han dynasty. They had two known children, Liu Ying (later E ...

(241–180 BC), wife of Emperor Gaozu, effective ruler of 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 ...

after the death of her husband *

Empress Lü (Houshao) Empress Lü (呂皇后, personal name unknown) (died c. 180 BC) was an empress during Han Dynasty. Lady Lü was the daughter of Lü Lu (呂祿), the son of Lü Shizhi (吕雉)— the elder brother of the powerful Empress Lü Zhi, Grand Empress Do ...

(died c. 180 BC), wife of Emperor Houshao of Han * Mother Lü (died 18 AD), rebel leader against the

Xin dynasty The Xin dynasty (; ), also known as Xin Mang () in Chinese historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty which lasted from 9 to 23 AD, established by the Han dynasty consort kin Wang Mang, who usurped the throne of the Emperor Pin ...

Lü Bu Lü Bu () (died 7 February 199), courtesy name Fengxian, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of Imperial China. Originally a subordinate of a minor warlord Ding Yuan, he betr ...

(died 199), Eastern Han dynasty warlord * Lü Meng (178–220), Eastern Wu military general * Lü Dai (161–256), Eastern Wu military general *

Lü Fan Lü Fan (died 228), courtesy name Ziheng, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Eastern Wu during the early Three King ...

(died 228), Eastern Wu official * Lü Yi (died 238), Eastern Wu official * Lü Yi (died 251), Shu Han official *

Lü Guang Lü Guang (; 337–400), courtesy name Shiming (世明), formally Emperor Yiwu of (Later) Liang ((後)涼懿武帝), was the founding emperor of the Di-led Chinese Later Liang dynasty (although during most of his reign, he used the title "Heaven ...

(337–400), founding emperor of Later Liang of the Sixteen Kingdoms *

Lü Shao Lü Shao (; died 400), courtesy name Yongye (永業), formally Prince Yin of (Later) Liang ((後)涼隱王), was briefly an emperor (with the title of "Heavenly Prince" ('' Tian Wang'')) of the Di-led Later Liang dynasty of China. He was a son ...

(died 400), third son of Lü Guang, emperor of Later Liang *

Lü Zuan Lü Zuan (; died 401), courtesy name Yongxu (永緒), formally Emperor Ling of (Later) Liang ((後)涼靈帝), was an emperor of the Di-led Later Liang dynasty of China. He was the oldest son of the founding emperor Lü Guang (Emperor Yiwu), b ...

(died 401), first son of Lü Guang, emperor of Later Liang * Lü Long (died 416), nephew of Lü Guang, last emperor of Later Liang *

Lü Yin Lü Yin (呂諲) (712–762), formally Count Su of Xuchang (須昌肅伯), was a Chinese military general and politician during the Tang Dynasty, serving as a chancellor during the reign of Emperor Suzong. Historians often regarded him as being m ...

(712–762),

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

chancellor *

Lü Dongbin Lü Dongbin (796 CE – 1016 CE) is a legendary Chinese scholar and poet said to have lived during the Tang Dynasty. Whether he actually lived the two hundred and twenty years cannot be determined. Elevated to the status of an immortal in the ...

(796–?), Tang dynasty scholar revered as one of the

Eight Immortals The Eight Immortals () are a group of legendary '' xian'' ("immortals") in Chinese mythology. Each immortal's power can be transferred to a vessel () that can bestow life or destroy evil. Together, these eight vessels are called the "Covert Eight ...

* Lü Mengzheng (吕蒙正; 946–1011),

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 ...

chancellor * Lü Tiancheng (1580–1618), playwright and poet *

Lü Liuliang Lü Liuliang (; 1629–3 October 1683) was a Han Chinese poet and author from Tongxiang, Zhejiang province. He was born under the Ming Dynasty but died under the Manchu Qing Dynasty. Career In 1647 one of his nephews was executed for anti-Qin ...

(1629–1683), poet and scholar *

Lü Bicheng Lü Bicheng (, also known as P. C. Lee i-Cheng Lee or Pi-Cheng Li Alice (P.) Lee or Alice Pichen Lee: 1883–1943) was a Chinese writer, activist, newspaper editor, poet and school founder. She has been mentioned as one of the top four women in ...

(1883−1943), woman writer and activist *

Lü Simian Lü Simian (; February 27, 1884 – October 9, 1957) was a Chinese historian. He was a former professor and history department head at Kwang Hua University, a predecessor of the East China Normal University in Shanghai. Lü took the courtes ...

(1884–1957), prominent historian * Lü Shuxiang (1904–1998), linguist, a founder of modern Chinese linguistic studies *

Lü Zhengcao Lü Zhengcao () (4 January 1904 – 13 October 2009) was a Chinese military officer. He was one of the original ''Shang Jiang'' of the People's Liberation Army. Lü was born in Haicheng, in the province of Liaoning. He joined the Chinese Comm ...

(1905–2009), People's Liberation Army general, Minister of Railways of China *

Lü Peijian Lü Peijian (; born August 1928) is a Chinese retired politician and central banker. He served as Vice Minister of Finance from 1978 to 1982, Governor of the People's Bank of China from 1982 to 1985, and Auditor General of the National Audit Off ...

(born 1928), former Governor of the

People's Bank of China The People's Bank of China (officially PBC or informally PBOC; ) is the central bank of the People's Republic of China, responsible for carrying out monetary policy and regulation of financial institutions in mainland China, as determined by ...

and Auditor General of the National Audit Office * Lu Liang-Huan (born 1936), golfer *

Chuan Leekpai Chuan Leekpai ( th, ชวน หลีกภัย, , ; ; born 28 July 1938) is a Thai politician who is the current President of the National Assembly of Thailand as well as the incumbent Speaker of the Thai House of Representatives. Previou ...

(born 1938), Chinese name Lü Jiwen, 20th Prime Minister of Thailand *

Annette Lu Annette Lu Hsiu-lien (; born 7 June 1944) is a Taiwanese politician. A feminist active in the tangwai movement, she joined the Democratic Progressive Party in 1990, and was elected to the Legislative Yuan in 1992. Subsequently, she served as Ta ...

(born 1944), former

Vice President of the Republic of China The vice president of the Republic of China, commonly referred to as the vice president of Taiwan, is the second-highest constitutional office of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Powers Under Article 49 the Constitution of the Republic of China ...

(Taiwan) * Lü Fuyuan (1945–2004), Minister of Commerce of China *

Lü Zushan Lü Zushan (born November 1946) is a politician of the People's Republic of China. He succeeded Xi Jinping as Governor of Zhejiang province in 2003. After retiring from provincial leadership in 2011, he has served as Vice-Chairman of the Financia ...

(born 1946), former Governor of

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

province *

Jiang Rong Lü Jiamin (born 1946 in Jiangsu), better known by his pseudonym Jiang Rong, is a Chinese writer, most famous for his best-selling 2004 novel ''Wolf Totem'', which he wrote under the pseudonym Jiang Rong. He is married to fellow novelist Zhang K ...

(born 1946), real name Lü Jiamin, best-selling novelist * Lü Xiwen (born 1955), former deputy party chief of

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

Lu Kuo-hua Lu Kuo-hua (; born 22 February 1956) is a politician in the Republic of China. He was the Magistrate of Yilan County from 2005 to 2009.http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2008/4/26/96765.html Yilan County Magistrate 2005 Yilan County magistr ...

(born 1956), Magistrate of Yilan County (2005–2009) * Ray Lui (born 1956),

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

-born

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 Delta i ...

actor * Roy Leu, Vice Minister of

Overseas Community Affairs Council The Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC; ; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Khièu-vu Vî-yèn-fi'') is a cabinet-level council of the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The council was founded in 1926 in Canton (Guangzhou) in Kwangtung (Gu ...

of the Republic of China * Lü Yue (born 1957), cinematographer and film director *

Lü Liping Lǚ Lìpíng (; born 3 April 1960) is a Chinese actress. Her career accolades include one Golden Rooster Award, Flying Apsaras Award, Golden Horse Award and Golden Phoenix Award, two Hundred Flowers Awards, Golden Eagle Awards and Chinese Film ...

(born 1960), actress * Lü Qin (born 1962),

xiangqi ''Xiangqi'' (; ), also called Chinese chess or elephant chess, is a strategy board game for two players. It is the most popular board game in China. ''Xiangqi'' is in the same family of games as '' shogi'', '' janggi'', Western chess, '' c ...

master * David Lui Fong (呂方; born 1963), Hong Kong singer and actor *

Lü Junchang Lü Junchang (; 1965 – 9 October 2018) was a Chinese palaeontologist and professor at the Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences. An expert on Mesozoic reptiles, he described and named dozens of dinosaur and pterosaur taxa ...

(1965–2018), palaeontologist * Lü Lin (born 1969),

table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...

player, Olympic champion * Lü Yan (born 1981), model and fashion designer * Lü Jie (born 1984), model and actress * Lü Xiaojun (born 1984), weightlifter, Olympic champion and world record holder * Lü Jianjun (born 1985), professional football player * Lu Chia-pin (born 1990), Taiwanese badminton player * Anthony Ler Wee Teang (吕伟添; 1967–2002), better known as

Anthony Ler Anthony Ler Wee Teang ( – 13 December 2002) was a Singaporean convicted murderer who hired a youth to murder his wife, 30-year-old real-estate agent Annie Leong Wai Mun, who was in the midst of a divorce with him. Ler's motive was to become ...

, a Singaporean convicted murderer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lu (Surname) Chinese-language surnames Individual Chinese surnames