Yǐn / Yin
The surname Yin is pronounced Yǐn. It is a relatively rare surname currently found among Han Chinese, with recorded distribution in Beijing; Taiyuan, Datong, Yangquan, Xinzhou, and Lingshi in Shanxi; Wuhan in Hubei; Sanhe in Hebei; and Shunde in Guangdong.
One account traces the surname to a marquisate named Yin in the Xia era, whose descendants adopted the state's name as their surname; this account also appears in Xingyuan.
Reference: 「引」氏百科-姓氏百科-百家姓氏-了解自己的姓氏从何而来
One account states that the Yin surname occurred among descendants of the ducal clan of Lu during the Spring and Autumn period, as recorded in Lushi.
The earliest recorded reference to the Yin surname is in the Southern Song work Xing氏 Jijiupian.
The Surname Dictionary records a Yuan-era person named Yin Zhu.
An older account says that the Gukouyin clan was changed to Yin under Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei. However, the Zhonghua punctuated edition of Weishu, Treatise on Official Clans reads that the Hugukouyin clan was changed to Hou, while related surname texts also preserve variants such as Guyin and Huyin; thus, whether the clan changed to Yin is disputed.
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