GGood Chinese Name

Chinese surname · rank 67

方

方 is read as fāng.

Pinyin

fāng

Script forms

Simplified and traditional 方

Basic meaning

square; direction; method

Five element

Earth

Origin

Time: Legendary Yandi/Fang Lei tradition and Zhou state/place layers; Zhou state-name tradition, 1046-256 BCE

Place: Ancient Fang traditions in the central plains

Origin note

A major Fang surname tradition links the surname with Fang Lei, a figure in Yandi-lineage cultural memory. Other branches are place or state-name traditions. The page presents Fang as an ancient lineage/place surname and keeps the basic meaning 'square/direction' separate.

Historical figures

方孝孺 (Fang Xiaoru)

1357-1402 CE · Ming scholar

A Ming scholar remembered for loyalty and tragedy after the Jingnan campaign.

方苞 (Fang Bao)

1668-1749 CE · Qing prose writer

A major Tongcheng school prose writer.

Sources checked