Yi / Yi
The surname Yi is pronounced yī and is currently uncommon. It is distributed in Wuqing of Tianjin, Shangyi and Laoting of Hebei, Pingyi and Pingdu of Shandong, Qingyuan of Liaoning, and other places; it is found among the Han, Tu, and Dai peoples.
Five origins are recorded for the Yi surname: descendants of the Yellow Emperor received the surname; a Zheng official in the Spring and Autumn period took the surname from his fief at Yi; descendants of the Fuyu state had the surname during the Jin period; members of the Aisin Gioro clan of the Manchu Eight Banners changed their surname to Yi in the Qing period; and it is also a Dai surname.
The Jin Commentary of the Guoyu lists Yi among the twelve surnames acquired by sons of the Yellow Emperor. The Lushi records that a Zheng official took Yi as his surname from his fief at Yi. The surname Yi is also included in the Xingshi Kaolue.
The Yi surname is common in the Northeast and is mostly of Manchu origin. Among the Dai, it is distributed in Menglian of Yunnan and along the China-Myanmar border; Yi is a transliteration of the Dai term for “second son.”
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