Surname Overview
An Extremely Rare Surname
The Feng surname is extremely rare; records state that only 17 people nationwide bear it, all living in Yaxing Village, Anxi County, Fujian.
枫 Surname
Population reference (not a current census): 5Origins
Two Origin Traditions
Two traditions describe the origin of the Feng surname: a magistrate rescued a child beneath a maple tree and named him Fengzai; alternatively, a Miao boy fleeing famine was rescued in a maple forest and given Feng as his surname.
Historical Records
Attestations in Surname Records
Feng (楓) is listed as a currently rather rare surname. It is recorded in Chenghai, Guangdong, and Datong and Linfen, Shanxi; another entry states that its origin is unknown.
Migration and Distribution
Continuity in Anxi
A Yaxing Village official stated that the Feng surname has reached its seventeenth generation and its descendants still live in Anxi County; younger people have gone to Fuzhou and Xiamen for study and work.
Genealogy and Generation Names
Lost Genealogy and Generational Memory
The Feng family's paper genealogy was destroyed by fire in earlier years, leaving oral accounts as the main means of preserving its history; clan member Feng Shuangjian identified himself as a sixteenth-generation member of the Feng lineage.
Research Notes
The Origin Remains Unsettled
Neither of the two origin traditions is supported by a complete genealogy, and oral accounts may contain deviations; the digital genealogy under preparation relies on elders' memories, so its completeness remains to be tested over time.
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