GGood Chinese Name

Chinese surname · rank 28

韩

韩 is read as hán.

Pinyin

hán

Script forms

Simplified 韩 · Traditional 韓

Basic meaning

ancient state of Han; Korea in modern compounds

Five element

Pending review

Origin

Time: Spring and Autumn Jin fief tradition; recognized as a Warring States polity in 403 BCE; conquered by Qin in 230 BCE

Place: Han fief/state tradition in Jin, associated with today's Shanxi region; later Han state centered in Henan

Origin note

For Chinese surname use, Han refers to the ancient Han lineage and state in China, not modern Korea. A major tradition begins with Han as a Jin fief or old Han place connected with Han Wuzi and later Han Jue. The Han lineage became one of the three families that partitioned Jin; King Weilie of Zhou recognized Han, Zhao and Wei as regional lords in 403 BCE. The Warring States state of Han was later conquered by Qin in 230 BCE, and descendants used Han as a surname.

Historical figures

韩非 (Han Fei)

c. 280-233 BCE · Warring States philosopher

A leading Legalist thinker from the state of Han, remembered through the text Han Feizi.

韩愈 (Han Yu)

768-824 CE · Tang essayist, poet and official

A major Tang writer and advocate of classical prose, later counted among the Eight Great Prose Masters of Tang and Song.

Sources checked