Surname Overview
Pronunciation and Status
The surname Tao is pronounced Táo. It is currently uncommon, broadly distributed, and small in population.
Táo Surname
Population reference (not a current census): 257Táo / T'ao
Origins
Five origins are recorded: adoption of the name of a Spring and Autumn Lu settlement; descent from an ancestor holding the fief of Taoqiu; adoption from the Zhou official craft surname Tao; descent from the Yan scholar Zuo Botao; and an Yi ethnic surname.
Historical Records
Documentary Attestations
The surname Tao is included in the Clan Compendium of the Zheng Comprehensive Gazetteer and the Continued Comprehensive Gazetteer; related origins are recorded in the Surname Discrimination, Surname Studies, and Rites of Zhou.
Migration and Distribution
Distribution and Ethnic Groups
The surname is found in Gao要, Fengshun, and Wuchuan in Guangdong; Lipu in Guangxi; Qiubei in Yunnan; Hejiang in Sichuan; Guichi in Anhui; Laohekou and Jianli in Hubei; Jing County in Hebei; Changle in Shandong; and Taiyuan in Shanxi. It occurs among the Han, Dai, Shui, Dong, and Lisu, among other ethnic groups.
Notable People
Historical Figures
Historical figures with the Tao surname include Tao Ying, Tao Bao, Tao Ren, and Tao Lihua. Tao Ying was a disciple of Mencius, and Tao Bao served as governor of Yuzhou.
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