Chinese surname · rank 245
茅
茅 is read as máo.
máo
Simplified and traditional 茅
reeds, rushes, grass
Wood
Time: Western Zhou Mao state layer, later Lu-Ju division layer, Cao/Zhu branch layer, and Song-Ming distribution layers; Western Zhou tradition, 1046-771 BCE
Place: Mao township southwest of today's Jinxiang County, Shandong; later Shaanxi, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hebei, Anhui, and Ningxia distribution contexts
Origin note
is mainly a state-name surname. The best-supported line says that in the early Western Zhou, Mao Shu, a son of Duke Zhou, was enfeoffed at Mao as a count; the old Mao area is placed around Mao township southwest of today's Jinxiang County, Shandong. After Mao was later divided or absorbed by neighboring Lu and Ju, descendants used the former state name as their surname. A second line is recorded under Cao-surname or Zhu-related branches: descendants connected with Zhu, and names such as Maodi or Maohong, are said to have shortened to the single surname Mao. The page keeps these as layered surname traditions rather than claiming that all Mao families descend from one branch.
Historical figures
Historical figures to enrich
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