Category: Origins

Origins of Chinese surnames

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Origins

李 (Li) in the Philippines

We begin this series on the origins of Chinese surnames with 李 (Li) – the biggest surname in China. 李 in Mandarin is Li, but in the Philippines, there are several spellings which all belong to this Chinese surname, such as Dy, Dee, and Lee – all pronounced as “di” in Hokkien. The surname 李 […]

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Origins

What’s in a name?

Interest in genealogy or ancestral roots is growing worldwide. This is so true among the Chinese who continue to observe the tradition of honoring ancestors from the distant past. Ancestral shrines that proudly display the family lineage, listing forefathers and descendants of the same surname, are commonplace even in modern China. In response to the […]