Surname Overview
Readings and Separate Origins of the Hao Surname
The Hao surname is currently uncommon and has two readings, gào and hào, with different origins. The gào branch derives from the Gao surname and changed to Hao to avoid danger.
Gào Surname
Population reference (not a current census): 8,495Gào / Kao
Origins
Change from Gao to Hao
Gao was the name of an ancient state belonging to the Ji surname, so the gào branch of the Hao surname is recorded as deriving from the Ji surname.
Historical Records
Documentary Records and Reading
The Hao surname is included in the Clan Records sections of the Zheng Tongzhi and Xu Tongzhi. The Dictionary of Surnames records the reading gào and cites a statement concerning Hao Yu that the Gao surname changed to Hao to avoid danger.
Notable People
Hao Xuzhou of the Tang Dynasty
Hao Xuzhou was a Tang-dynasty writer whose original surname was Gao; his ancestors changed to the Hao surname to avoid danger. He passed the Presented Scholar examination in the second year of Changqing and later passed the Hongci examination.
Research Notes
The Reading Remains Debated
After the Gao surname changed to Hao, the character form changed, but whether the pronunciation also changed remains uncertain. The Hanyu Da Zidian records the reading hào, so both readings are retained for reference.
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