Ye (simplified Chinese: 叶; traditional Chinese: 葉; pinyin: Yè; Wade–Giles: Yeh) is a common Asian surname. It is also the 42nd most common Chinese surname[1] as well as a common Vietnamese surname. In Vietnam, it is spelled Yeh or traditionally spelled Diệp. The same Chinese character is commonly romanized as Ye in mainland China and Yeh in Taiwan from the Mandarin pronunciation. In Hong Kong, Macau, and Southeast Asia, it is usually romanized as Yip or Ip from the Cantonese pronunciation, and Yap or Yeap from Hakka or Minnan pronunciations. Less common spellings are Yee and Ee, which are usually alternate spellings for the different surname Yu (余).
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Etymology and pronunciations
Although the surname Ye shares the same Chinese character that means leaf/leaves, it actually originated in the 5th century BC from the city of Ye in the State of Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period.[2] The city was located in present-day Ye County in Henan Province. The surname's modern pronunciations are Yè in Mandarin and Yip in Cantonese, but in Ancient Chinese the character Yè (葉) was pronounced [ɕiɛp] (romanized as Sjep),[3] and its original pronunciation in Archaic Chinese is undetermined. According to the 11th century Guangyun dictionary, the character was a homophone of other characters such as 攝 and 歙[3] which are pronounced shè in modern Mandarin and sip in modern Cantonese. It is not clear when the pronunciation of Yè (葉) diverged from its former homophones.
Origin
The surname Ye originated from the royal family of Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period of the Zhou Dynasty. According to Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian, Yuxiong, a descendant of the Yellow Emperor's grandson Zhuanxu, was the teacher of King Wen of Zhou. After the Zhou overthrew the Shang Dynasty, King Cheng of Zhou (reigned 1042-1021 BC) awarded Yuxiong's great-grandson Xiong Yi the fiefdom of Chu, which over the ensuing centuries developed into a powerful kingdom. King Zhuang of Chu (reigned 613-591 BC) was one of the Five Hegemons, the most powerful monarchs during the Spring and Autumn Period.[4]
A great-grandson of King Zhuang named Shu was appointed yin (governor) of Shen (in present-day Linquan County of Anhui Province), and became known as Shen Yin Shu (Chinese: 沈尹戍). In 506 BCE the State of Wu invaded Chu with an army commanded by the famous generals Wu Zixu and Sun Tzu, author of The Art of War. Shen Yin Shu, who had risen to the position of Sima (chief commander of the army), died in the aftermath of the historic Battle of Boju.[5][6]
After the war King Zhao of Chu enfeoffed Shen Yin Shu's son Shen Zhuliang (Chinese: 沈諸梁) with the city of Ye, located at the northern frontier of the kingdom. In 478 BC, during the reign of King Hui, Shen Zhuliang put down the rebellion of Bai Gong Sheng (Duke of Bai) and restored the king's rule. He became lingyin (prime minister) and sima at the same time and was awarded the title Ye Gong (葉公, Duke of Ye).[2]
In pre-Qin Dynasty China, noble families usually had two surnames: xìng (姓, ancestral name) and shì (氏, clan name). Shen Zhuliang, as a member of the ruling house of Chu, shared the ancestral name of Mi (芈) of the Chu kings. He also inherited the clan name of Shen from his father. Due to the fame of the Duke of Ye, however, his descendants adopted Ye as their clan name. Later the distinction between the ancestral and clan names was abolished, and Ye became the surname of Shen Zhuliang's descendants. Shen Zhuliang, now better known as Ye Gong, is considered the founding ancestor of the Ye clan.[2]
Notable people surnamed Ye
Ancient China
- Ye Heng (葉衡), Southern Song Dynasty prime minister
- Ye Shi (葉適), Southern Song Dynasty neo-Confucian scholar (1150–1223)
- Ye Mengding (葉夢鼎), Southern Song Dynasty prime minister (1200-1279)
- Ye Shaoweng (葉紹翁), Southern Song Dynasty poet
- Ye Chen (葉琛), Ming Dynasty governor (1314–1362)
- Ye Xianggao (葉向高), Ming Dynasty prime minister (1559－1627)
Modern times
- Ye Mingchen (葉名琛), Qing Dynasty governor of Guangdong Province (1807-1859)
- Yap Ah Loy (葉亞來), founder of Kuala Lumpur (1837-1885)
- Ye Chengzhong (T:葉澄衷 S:叶澄衷), tycoon and philanthropist (1840-1899)
- Yip Man (葉問), martial artist (1893-1972)
- Ye Shengtao (T:葉聖陶 S:叶圣陶), educator (1893–1988)
- Ye Ting (T:葉挺 S:叶挺), general, New Fourth Army (1896–1946)
- Ye Jianying (T:葉劍英 S:叶剑英), general, chairman of the national congress of China (1897–1986)
- Ye Fei (T:葉飛 S:叶飞), Chinese-Filipino, general of the People's Liberation Army Navy (1914-1999)
- Ye Xuanping (叶选平), governor of Guangdong Province, son of Ye Jianying
- Ye Xiaogang (葉小綱), composer
- Sally Yeh (葉蒨文), singer
- Michelle Ye (葉璇), actress
- Veronica Yip (T:葉玉卿), former Hong Kong actress
- Françoise Yip (T:葉芳華), Chinese-Canadian actress
- Gloria Yip (T: 葉蘊儀 S: 叶蕴仪), Hong Kong actress (b. 1973)
- Yapp Hung Fai (T:葉鴻輝), Hong Kong soccer goalkeeper
- Brandon Yip, Canadian NHL hockey player
- Greg Ip, journalist
References
- ^ "Newest 100 Surnames". 2006-01-10. http://culture.163.com/06/0110/09/273JO40F00280003.html. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
- ^ a b c 葉姓來源及郡望堂號
- ^ a b 廣韻査詢系統/小韻檢索/攝
- ^ Sima Qian. "楚世家 (House of Chu)" (in Chinese). Records of the Grand Historian. http://www.guoxue.com/shibu/24shi/shiji/sj_040.htm. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ 沈尹戍
- ^ "柏舉之戰 (Battle of Boju)". Ministry of Defense. 22 July 2009. http://www.mod.gov.cn/big5/hist/2009-07/22/content_4005805.htm. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
External links
- Descendants of Ye visit ancestral lands (in Chinese)
- Sina surname wiki project (in Chinese)
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