Chinese surname · rank 258
仲
仲 is read as zhòng.
zhòng
Simplified and traditional 仲
middle brother; go between, mediator
Earth
Time: Ancient Gaoxin and Shang name-based traditions, Zhou and Spring-Autumn style-name layers, Southern-dynasties and Sui-Tang East-China record layer, and modern Jiangsu-Liaoning-Shandong-Shanghai distribution layer; Shang tradition, c. 1600-1046 BCE
Place: Gaoxin and Shang court traditions; Zheng, Lu, Song, and Zhou aristocratic contexts; East China historical distribution; later Jiangsu, Liaoning, Shandong, Shanghai, Shaanxi, Heilongjiang, Henan, Anhui, and Gansu branches
Origin note
is a multi-source surname built around ancestral names and style names using zhong, the term for the second in a sequence. One early layer comes from the Gaoxin tradition: Zhong Kan and Zhong Xiong, two of the Eight Talents, are recorded as ancestors whose descendants used Zhong. A second layer comes from Shang: Zhong Hui, Tang's left minister and a descendant of Xi Zhong, is a major honored ancestor. Zhou and Spring-Autumn layers include Zhong Shanfu, Ji Zhong of Zheng, Lu Gongzi Qingfu also called Gong Zhong, and Song Duke Zhuang's son whose style was Zi Zhong. A later widely recognized lineage honors Zhong You, also known as Zilu, a disciple of Confucius. The page keeps these as parallel name-based branches rather than one exclusive descent claim.
Historical figures
Historical figures to enrich
This surname page is ready for a fame-ranked figure list. Later passes can add generals, poets, rulers, artists, scholars and modern public figures with source links.