Bai Jia Xing compound surname #24
令狐
令狐 is read as Línghú. It is one of the 60 compound surnames in the expanded Bai Jia Xing sequence.
Pinyin
Línghú
Script forms
Simplified and traditional 令狐
Meaning
place-name surname from Linghu
Five element
Earth
Origin
Time: Spring and Autumn period, 770-476 BCE
Place: Linghu fief, often identified in Shanxi
Origin
令狐 is traced to the Wei clan of Jin. Wei Ke was awarded the Linghu fief after military merit against Qin, and his descendants used the fief name as a surname.
Name meaning
The surname carries fief, gratitude, and martial-story associations. Linghu Chong gives it extremely high recognition in wuxia fiction.
Historical figures
令狐冲
Linghu Chong is the free-spirited hero of Jin Yong's The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, making Linghu feel witty, romantic and martial.