Lei Surname

Surname Overview

Lei (traditional form: 類) is a currently uncommon Han Chinese surname, pronounced lèi.

Reference: 类姓_类姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Origins

Two Origin Traditions

Two origin traditions are recorded for the Lei surname: one says that Shaohao Qingyang married a woman from the Lei clan and that the Lei surname followed; the other identifies it as a Yi surname recorded in the Xingyuan.

Reference: 类姓_类姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Historical Records

Documentary Attestations

The Shizüe sections of the Zheng Tongzhi, Xu Tongzhi, and Qing Tongzhi all record the Lei surname, whose commandery seat was Gaomi. Recorded figures include Lei Lao of the Han, Lei Yan of the Song, Lei Kang of the Ming, and Lei Xiangsheng of the Qing.

Reference: 类姓_类姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Migration and Distribution

Distribution and Migration

The Lei surname is concentrated mainly in Shandong, with the densest population in Mengyin. Many Lei families from Mengyin, Shandong, moved to Jiangsu, Shanxi, Northeast China, and Taiwan; apart from the large-scale migration of 1958–1961, departures were mostly sporadic.

Reference: 类姓_类姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Genealogy and Generation Names

Mengyin Genealogy

The Mengyin Lei genealogy was first compiled in 1885. In 1890, the first formal genealogy was printed from the stone genealogy; the clan later revised it three times, most recently in 1999 as the Dongmeng Lei Genealogy.

Reference: 类姓_类姓的来源和历史_百家姓