Chinese surname · rank 154

管

管 is read as guǎn.

Pinyin

guǎn

Script forms

Simplified and traditional 管

Basic meaning

wind instrument; tube or pipe; to manage

Five element

Wood

Origin

Time: Western Zhou enfeoffment layer, after King Wu's conquest of Shang; surname-record tradition attested in later surname/dictionary sources.; Western Zhou tradition, 1046-771 BCE

Place: Guan fief/state, commonly associated with the Zhengzhou / Guancheng area of Henan; exact ancient-site identification should be phrased cautiously because local-history material notes scholarly debate.

Origin note

The source-backed core story is that King Wu of Zhou enfeoffed his brother Shu Xian at Guan. Because Shu Xian was associated with Guan, he is known as Guan Shu. Later surname tradition treats Guan as a fief/state-name surname used by descendants connected with that Guan lineage.

Historical figures

Historical figures to enrich

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Sources checked

Han Dian: Guan - basic character meaning, bamboo radical/phonetic structure, and surname listing
Chinese Text Project: Shiji, Guan-Cai Shijia - Guan Shu Xian as King Wen son and King Wu brother; King Wu enfeoffed Shu Xian at Guan; later revolt record
Chinese Text Project Dictionary: Guan / Guangyun note - Guangyun-derived note: Guan as surname, from Pingyuan, descendants of Guan Shu, son of King Wen of Zhou
Zhengzhou Civil Affairs Bureau: Fengwu Zhengzhou - Shangdu Guancheng - local-history note that Guan Shu Xian enfeoffment established Guan state in today Zhengzhou area
Zhengzhou Museum PDF: Where was Western Zhou Guan Yi - caution that the exact location of Western Zhou Guan is debated, though generally within the Zhengzhou region

管 🔊

Origin note

Historical figures

Historical figures to enrich

Sources checked

管