Xiang Surname

Surname Overview

Overview

Xiang is a Chinese surname pronounced xiāng. It is currently uncommon, and the family lineage is recorded as having continued for twenty-six generations.

Reference: 香姓-快懂百科

Origins

Change of Surname

At the end of the Southern Song, Cha Kaixiang followed the Song imperial house south and lived in seclusion at Chashan in Dongguan, Guangdong, later changing the surname Cha to Xiang.

Reference: 香姓-快懂百科

Historical Records

Documentary Attestations

The Continued Comprehensive Gazetteer: Clan Records includes the Xiang surname. Materials cited by A Study of Surnames discuss Yuexiang in the two Guang regions, descendants of Qi Xiang Ju, and people from the Western Regions' Xiang state.

Reference: 香姓_香姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Commanderies and Clan Halls

Commanderies

The recorded commanderies associated with the Xiang surname are Xuchang and Qi.

Reference: 香姓_香姓的来源和历史_百家姓

Migration and Distribution

The recorded southward route runs from Hangzhou to Zhuji Lane in Nanxiong, Guangdong, then to Chashan Town in Dongguan and finally Cun Tou Village in Hengli Town, Dongguan. Xiang families are now found in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Anhui, Shanxi, Minqin in Gansu, Mongolia, Xinjiang, Vientiane in Laos, and elsewhere.

Reference: 香姓:姓氏起源,家族分布,家族名人,隱居南粵,東部文化,護帝忠臣避難南粵,舊時庭院_中文百科全書

Notable People

Historical Figures

Recorded figures include Xiang Zhui of the Han period, also cited as Xiang Long in the Dictionary of Surnames, Xiang Ya of the Song period, and Xiang Niu of the Ming period. Xiang Ya was a Western Xia commander during the Xining era, while Xiang Niu served as an interpreter at the Siyiguan.

Reference: 香姓_香姓的来源和历史_百家姓