cǎi Surname

Surname Overview

Cai is currently a relatively rare surname, recorded as cǎi.

Reference: 彩姓_彩姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Origins

One account traces the surname to Cai, son of the Yellow Emperor and bearer of the Ji surname, regarded as the ancestor of both the Cai lineage and the Cai surname. Another traces it to the Manchu Irha Hala, with some descendants adopting Cai as a Chinese surname based on its meaning.

Reference: 彩姓_彩姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Historical Records

Documentary Attestations

The Tangyun records “Cai, a surname,” while Zhongguo Xingshi Ji records the surname in Chengzhuang, Minquan County, Henan. The Jizhong Jinian contains an instance of “cai” replacing “cai” in describing Emperor Yao’s eyebrows.

Reference: 彩姓_彩姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Migration and Distribution

Distribution

The Cai surname is distributed in Langfang in Hebei; Jiang County and Yulin in Shanxi; Changzhou in Jiangsu; Huainan in Anhui; Minquan in Henan; Xingcheng in Liaoning; Longyan in Fujian; Ji’an in Jiangxi; Hangzhou in Zhejiang; Tainan in Taiwan; and Singapore and South Korea.

Reference: 彩姓_彩姓的来源_彩姓族谱_姓氏彩姓的名人_彩氏家谱_百家姓

Notable People

Historical Figure

Cai Yunbiao, a Manchu born in 1953 from Xingcheng, Liaoning, was a major general in the PLA’s professional technical corps and a satellite tracking and control expert; he served as deputy director of the tracking and control center at the Xichang Satellite Center.

Reference: 彩姓_彩姓的来源_彩姓族谱_姓氏彩姓的名人_彩氏家谱_百家姓

Research Notes

Limits of Historical Identification

“Cai” and “cai” had equivalent meanings in ancient times, but the page both states that the derivation of the Cai surname from the Cai surname lacks verifiable historical evidence and endorses that account; another entry summarizes the origin as unknown.

Reference: 彩姓_彩姓的来源和历史_百家姓