Bai Jia Xing compound surname #27

长孙

长孙 is read as Zhǎngsūn. It is one of the 60 compound surnames in the expanded Bai Jia Xing sequence.

Pinyin

Zhǎngsūn

Script forms

Simplified 长孙 · Traditional 長孫

Meaning

eldest grandson or senior descendant

Five element

Wood

Origin

Time: Han attestations and Northern Wei reform, 202 BCE-534 CE

Place: Northern Wei Xianbei court and Central Plains sinicization

Origin

长孙 has older attestations, but a major documented line comes from Northern Wei surname reforms, when the Bába clan was changed to Zhangsun under Emperor Xiaowen. It should not be reduced to only one branch, but the Northern Wei reform is the clearest historical layer.

Name meaning

The literal sense suggests senior descent and inherited rank. Zhangsun Wuji and Empress Zhangsun give it a strong Tang political association.

Historical figures