Surname Overview
Surname and Pronunciation
姚 is pronounced yáo and is a surname.
Yao Surname
Population reference (not a current census): 4,933,886Yao / Yao
Origins
Descendants of Yu Shun
姚 is traditionally said to descend from Yu Shun and to have taken its surname from Yu Shun's residence at Yaoxu.
Historical Records
Early Textual Attestation
The Shuowen Jiezi records that Yu Shun lived at Yaoxu and adopted it as his surname; a related account appears in the Dahuang Nan Jing, which refers to the country born of Dijun's wife Ehuang as having the 姚 surname.
Reference: 姚的意思,姚的解释,姚的拼音,姚的部首,姚的笔顺-汉语国学
姚 in Classical Records
The Zuozhuan, under Duke Ai's first year, records “the two Yao women”; the Qing-dynasty figure Yao Nai is also recorded as a person with the 姚 surname.
Character Form and Surname Meaning
姚 is a phonetic compound character, formed from 女 with 兆 as its phonetic component; Shuowen Jiezi explains its original meaning as a surname.
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