Song Surname

Surname Overview

Contemporary Ancestral-Home Distribution

Among contemporary Song-surname users, ancestral homes are mainly distributed in Shandong, Hebei, and Jiangsu, accounting for 15.8%, 8.6%, and 8.5%, respectively.

Reference: 宋姓起源分布与家谱家族

Origins

Origins of the Zi-Surname Song Lineage

The Song surname mainly originated from the Zi surname. After Qi destroyed Song in 286 BCE, descendants of the Song state adopted the state name as their surname. The Zi-surname Song lineage has a history of at least 3,200 years, and the widespread use of Song as a surname dates back more than 2,200 years.

Reference: 宋姓起源分布与家谱家族

Migration and Distribution

Distribution from the Pre-Qin Period to the Tang and Song Dynasties

Before the Qin dynasty, the Song lineage was mainly active in Hebei, Henan, and Shandong. During the Han, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties, it spread to Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Hubei, Anhui, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang. During the Tang and Song dynasties, it expanded further to Sichuan, Guangxi, Hunan, Guangdong, and Fujian.

Reference: 宋姓起源分布与家谱家族

Migration during the Song, Yuan, and Ming Periods

Over the 600 years of the Song, Yuan, and Ming periods, the Song-surname population showed negative growth. During the Ming dynasty, Song-surname people mainly migrated from the north toward the east, southeast, and south, forming two major population clusters in Lu-Ji and Gan-Zhe-Su.

Reference: 宋姓起源分布与家谱家族