Guan () is a

Chinese surname Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicization, Sinicized ethnic groups in Greater China, Korea, Vietnam and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia. Written Chinese names begin with surnames, ...

. 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 language , Chinese text composed of common Chinese surnames. An unknown author compiled the book ...

. In

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

, the surname is

romanised In linguistics, romanization 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 transcription, ...

as Kwan in Cantonese. In

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

, the

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

spelling Kuan is used. In

Macao Macau or Macao is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most densely populated region in the world. Formerly a Portuguese colony, the ter ...

, the surname is as Kuan due to the Portuguese influence. In addition the surname Cuan is also used in Mexico. In many

overseas Chinese Overseas Chinese people are Chinese people, people of Chinese origin who reside outside Greater China (mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan). As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. As of 2023, there were 10.5 milli ...

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 (), that uses the same character. The Vietnamese surname, Quan and the Japanese surname, Seki, were derived from the same Chinese character as the Chinese surname (The Japanese

Kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, 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 and are ...

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 exten ...

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,; also known as Ulanhad ( (Улаанхад хот), ''Ulaɣanqada qota'', , "red cliff") also known as Ulankhad in Mongolian, is a prefecture-level city in Southeastern Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. It borders Xilin Gol Le ...

within the old

Rehe Province Rehe, previously romanized as Jehol, was a former Chinese special administrative region and province centered on the city of Rehe, now known as Chengde. Administration Rehe was north of the Great Wall and east of Mongolia in southwestern M ...

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, it was established by the legendary figure Yu the Great, after Emperor Shun, Shun, the last of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Fiv ...

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

(關龍逢) was an officer of

Jie of Xia King Jie ( zh, c=桀; traditionally 1728–1675 BCE) 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.

002 002, 0O2, O02, OO2, or 002 may refer to: Airports *0O2, Baker Airport *O02, Nervino Airport Astronomy *1996 OO2, the minor planet 7499 L'Aquila *1990 OO2, the asteroid 9175 Graun Fiction *002, fictional British 00 Agent *''002 Operazione Luna'' ...

(2002) Chinese civ ...

's reign. *In 643 BCE, during the

Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ) was a royal dynasty of China that existed for 789 years from until 256 BC, the longest span of any dynasty in Chinese history. During the Western Zhou period (771 BC), the royal house, surnamed Ji, had military ...

, 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 par ...

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

Dongguan Dongguan,; pinyin: alternately romanized via Cantonese as Tungkun, 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 t ...

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

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

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

Dǒng Dong () is a surname of Chinese origin. ''Dong'' is from a Chinese character that also means "to supervise" or "to administer." The story goes that in the 23rd century BC, an adviser to the Emperor Shun was conferred this surname due to his abilit ...

(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 Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China (Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family of M ...

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

Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

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 (), postal map romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized in Cantonese as Hoiping, in local dialect as Hoihen, is a county-level city in Guangdong provinces of China, Province, China. It is located in the western secti ...

(Hoiping) in Guangdong province. *During the

Jin dynasty (1115–1234) The Jin dynasty (, ), officially known as the Great Jin (), was a Jurchen people, Jurchen-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and empire ruled by the Wanyan clan that existed between 1115 and 1234. It is also often called the ...

, the surname 關 has also been founded by the

Jurchen people Jurchen (, ; , ) is a term used to collectively describe a number of East Asian people, East Asian Tungusic languages, Tungusic-speaking people. They lived in northeastern China, also known as Manchuria, before the 18th century. The Jurchens wer ...

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 ( zh, t=蜀, p=Shǔ; Sichuanese Pinyin: ''Su'' < Middle Chinese: *''źjowk'' < Eastern Han Chinese: *''dźok''), was a Dynasties in ...

during the

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu dominated China from AD 220 to 280 following the end of the Han dynasty. This period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and followed by the Jin dynasty (266–420), Western Jin dyna ...

era; aka Kuan Kung in Chinese folklore. * Guan Ping (關平), Guan Yu's son, also a general of

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 (關播) official and chancellor of the Tang dynasty * Guan Tong (關仝, c. 906–960), Chinese landscape painter during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period *

Guan Hanqing Guan Hanqing (, 1241–1320); sobriquet Yǐzhāi (已齋), Yīzhāi (一齋), Yǐzhāisǒu (已齋叟); was a Chinese dramatist, playwright, and poet during the Yuan Dynasty. He has been described as among the most prolific and highly regarde ...

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

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty ( ; zh, c=元朝, p=Yuáncháo), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian language, Mongolian: , , literally 'Great Yuan State'), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after Div ...

Guan Tianpei Guan Tianpei (; 1781 – 26 February 1841), courtesy name Zhongyin (仲因), art name Zipu (滋圃), 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, ...

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

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

, who served in the

First Opium War The First Opium War ( zh, t=第一次鴉片戰爭, p=Dìyīcì yāpiàn zhànzhēng), also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1 ...

* Guan Xie (關寫, 1889-1928), writer and poet during World War I

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 ...

(关紫兰, 1903–1986), Chinese avant-garde painter *

Guan Linzheng Guan Linzheng (; March 19, 1905– August 1, 1980) was a Republic of China general who served during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War. Early life and career Guan Linzheng was born in a rural peasant family in Hu County, Sh ...

(關麟徵, 1905–1980), Kuomintang general * Kwan Man-ching (關文清, 1896–1995), Hong Kong director * Kwan Tak-hing (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 (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 whose career benefited from Hollywood's casting of more Asian roles in the 1960s, especially in comedies. She was considered an Eastern sex symbol in the 1960s. Biography ...

(關家蒨, b. 1939), Chinese-American actress known for her Hollywood films * Michael Kwan (關正傑, b. 1949), Hong Kong Cantopop singer *

Jean Quan Lai Jean Quan (born October 21, 1949) is an American politician who served 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, 2011, sh ...

(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. He first landed a job at TVB after receiving a mass communications degree at Hong Kong Baptist Colle ...

(關錦鵬, b. 1957), Hong Kong director and producer *

Susanna Kwan Susanna Kwan Kuk-ying (born May 3, 1958) is a Hong Kong singer and actress. Background She has recently been an actress for a number of TVB shows. Her nickname is "Big Doll" or "Small Sworn Mother" (as her performance in Wong Sau-kum of ''Heart ...

(關菊英, b. 1958), Hong Kong singer and actress *

Betty Kwan Chinn Betty Kwan Chinn (關惠群) is a philanthropist who lives in Eureka, California. She has helped the homeless—including the mentally ill, disabled veterans, runaways, and drug abusers—since the 1980s. She won the 2008 Minerva Award. She used ...

(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 (關詠荷, b. 1964), Hong Kong actress *

Shirley Kwan Shirley Kwan Suk-yee (; born 15 August 1966) is a Hong Kong singer and actress. Kwan first shot to fame in 1989 with the hit " Happy Are Those in Love" () and was widely popular throughout the early to mid-1990s. She is noted for her distinct, wh ...

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

Ke Huy Quan Ke Huy Quan ( ; ; born August 20, 1971), also known as Jonathan Ke Quan, is an American actor. List of awards and nominations received by Ke Huy Quan, His accolades include a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award. Born in Vietnam, Quan immig ...

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

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

(關心妍, b. 1979), Hong Kong Cantopop singer * Julia Kwan, Canadian screenwriter and director *

Michelle Kwan Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980) is a retired American competitive figure skating, figure skater and diplomat who served as List of ambassadors of the United States to Belize, United States Ambassador to Belize from 2022 to 2025. In ...

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

Kelvin Kwan Kelvin Kwan Cho-yiu (born 24 March 1983) is a Canadian-born Hong Kong Cantopop singer signed to 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 ...

(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 Singaporean-born American novelist and writer of satirical novels ''Crazy Rich Asians'', '' China Rich Girlfriend'', and '' Rich People Problems''. His latest book, '' Lies and Weddings'', was released in June 2024. In ...

, Singaporean novelist * Kwan Swee Lian, Malaysian chef and businessperson * Steven Kwan, American professional baseball player * Daniel Kwan, (關家永, b. 1988) American film director, producer and screenwriter * Sharon Kwan, (關詩敏, b. 1995) Chinese-American singer

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 mathematician, samurai, and Kofu feudal officer of the early Edo period of Japan. Se ...

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

Notable modern people

* Megumi Seki, actress * Tsutomu Seki (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