Zi (子) was the royal surname of the Kings of 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 ...

, originally from their ancestor named Xie (契). After the fall of the Shang and the rise of 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 ...

, the royal family changed their surname to Yīn (殷), the name of their capital. Other names derived from Zi include Kong (孔), which was created by graphically combining “子” with “乙” Yi, from 太乙, the courtesy name of King

Tang of Shang Cheng Tang (), personal name Zi Lü (), recorded on oracle bones as Da Yi (大乙), was the first king of the Shang dynasty in Chinese history. Traditionally considered a virtuous ruler, he overthrew Jie, the last ruler of the Xia dynasty. Rise ...

. In modern times, it was found to be the 413th-most common surname, shared by 110,000 people.

Notable people

Bi Gan Prince Bi Gan (, Bǐgān) was a prominent Chinese figure during the Shang dynasty. He was a son of King Wen Ding, and an uncle of King Zhou, and served as the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Shang. He was later worshipped as the God of Wealth. ...

or Bigan (比干) was a prominent Chinese political figure during the Shang dynasty.

References

individual Chinese surnames {{Surname-stub