Surname Overview
The Pan surname is pronounced pán. It is a currently common surname with broad distribution, especially in southern China, and is found among the Han, Yao, She, Shui, Tujia, and other ethnic groups.
Pan Surname
Population reference (not a current census): 201,284Pan / Pan
Origins
Three Lineages
The recorded lineages of the Pan surname include descendants of Pangu, Panhu, and the Shang ruler Pan Geng, respectively taking the surname from an ancestral title or name.
Historical Records
Textual Attestations
The Clan Records sections of the Zheng Tongzhi and Xu Tongzhi both include the Pan surname. Zheng Qiao described it as descending from Panhu and as one of the six surnames of Banan.
Migration and Distribution
After the Baipu were defeated by the Chu army in 523 BCE, they migrated on a large scale toward the southwest and settled across Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Hunan. The Pan clans are described as descendants of the Baipu. Pan clans are currently distributed in Guangxi, Guangdong, Hunan, Sichuan, Chongqing, Hubei, Hainan, Taiwan, Malaysia, and elsewhere.
Notable People
Historical Figure
Pan Qiao was a Yao woman from Jiangyong, Hunan, described as the creator of Nüshu; her dates of birth and death are unknown.
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Surname attestation references
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