Zhao (surname)
Encyclopedia
Zhao / Chao or Chiu is a common Chinese family name, ranking as the 7th most common surname in Mainland China
Mainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...

. Zhao is the first surname in the famous Hundred Family Surnames
Hundred Family Surnames
The Hundred Family Surnames is a classic Chinese text composed of common surnames in ancient China. The book was composed in the early Song Dynasty. It originally contained 411 surnames, but was later expanded to 504. Of these, 444 are single-character surnames, and 60 are double-character surnames...

 – the traditional list of all Chinese surnames – because it was the royal surname of the Song Dynasty
Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...

 (960–1279) when the list was compiled.

Zhao is one of the most ancient of Chinese surnames, and its origins are partly shrouded in legend. During the reign of King Mu of Zhou
King Mu of Zhou
King Mu of Zhou or King Mu of Chou or Mu Wang or Mu Wang was the fifth sovereign of the Chinese Zhou Dynasty. The dates of his reign are 976-922 BC or 956-918 BC.-Life:...

 (976/956 BC – 922/918 BC), an officer named Zaofu proved exceptionally adept at training horses and driving chariots and won the respect of King Mu. During a battle with the eastern state of Xu
Xu (state)
The State of Xu was a vassal state of ancient China during the Zhou Dynasty and Spring and Autumn Period ruled by descendants of the Yíng family. Xu was a Dongyi state also known as Xurong , Xuyi or Xufang , all meaning either "Xu barbarians" or "Xu Proper". Xu was one of the largest and most...

, a non-Chinese state which was resisting Zhou rule, Zaofu drove a chariot into the battle and escorted King Mu back to the Zhou capital. In gratitude, King Mu enfeoffed Zaofu as the lord of Zhao, a town in what is now Hongdong County, Shanxi Province, to be held by his descendants in perpetuity. Zaofu's descendants took Zhao as a surname to mark their prestigious association with the city. Records such as Sima Qian
Sima Qian
Sima Qian was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the Han Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography for his highly praised work, Records of the Grand Historian , a "Jizhuanti"-style general history of China, covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow Emperor to...

's Records of the Grand Historian
Records of the Grand Historian
The Records of the Grand Historian, also known in English by the Chinese name Shiji , written from 109 BC to 91 BC, was the Magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the Yellow Emperor until his own time...

say that Zaofu was a descendant of legendary kings Zhuanxu
Zhuanxu
Zhuanxu , also known as Gaoyang is a mythological monarch of ancient China.A grandson of the Yellow Emperor, Zhuanxu led the Shi clan in an eastward migration to present-day Shandong, where intermarriages with the Dongyi clan enlarged and augmented their tribal influences...

, Shaohao
Shaohao
Shaohao , also known as Shao Hao, Jin Tian or Xuanxiao, was a Chinese emperor in 2600 BC. According to some traditions , he was, in some versions, one of the Five Emperors....

, and the Yellow Emperor
Yellow Emperor
The Yellow Emperor or Huangdi1 is a legendary Chinese sovereign and culture hero, included among the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he reigned from 2697–2597 or 2696–2598 BC...

.

The town Zhao became part of the state of Jin during the Warring States Period
Warring States Period
The Warring States Period , also known as the Era of Warring States, or the Warring Kingdoms period, covers the Iron Age period from about 475 BC to the reunification of China under the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC...

, when the Zhou Dynasty began to collapse. In 403 BC, Jin split into three smaller states, one of which was the state of Zhao
Zhao (state)
Zhao was a significant Chinese state during the Warring States Period, along with six others...

. The Zhao rulers were highly successful, and were one of the last major states conquered by the Qin Dynasty
Qin Dynasty
The Qin Dynasty was the first imperial dynasty of China, lasting from 221 to 207 BC. The Qin state derived its name from its heartland of Qin, in modern-day Shaanxi. The strength of the Qin state was greatly increased by the legalist reforms of Shang Yang in the 4th century BC, during the Warring...

 during its unification of China.

As with all ancient Chinese surnames, the Zhao family was constantly added to by marriages, its bestowal upon commoners for meritorious deeds, and its adoption by non-Chinese peoples assimilated into Han Chinese
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...

 culture. The Zhao name experienced a great revival after Zhao Kuangyin became the first emperor of the Song Dynasty in 960 AD, leading to 300 years of Zhao rule over China.

Rarely, Zhao can denote the much less common family name Zhaò (兆).

Prominent people with the family name

  • The Zhao royals of the State of Zhao
    Zhao (state)
    Zhao was a significant Chinese state during the Warring States Period, along with six others...

  • The Triệu/Zhao royals of Triệu Dynasty/Nanyue
    Nanyue
    Nanyue was an ancient kingdom that consisted of parts of the modern Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan and northern Vietnam. Nanyue was established in 204 BC at the final collapse of the Qin Dynasty by Zhao Tuo, who was the military commander of Nanhai Commandery at the time, and...

  • The Zhao royals of the Song Dynasty
    Song Dynasty
    The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...

  • Zhao Ziyang
    Zhao Ziyang
    Zhao Ziyang was a high-ranking politician in the People's Republic of China . He was the third Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1980 to 1987, and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1987 to 1989....

     (traditional Chinese: 趙紫陽, simplified Chinese: 赵紫阳), Chinese politician
  • Elaine L. Chao (traditional Chinese: 趙小蘭), American politician, served as the 24th United States Secretary of Labor
    United States Secretary of Labor
    The United States Secretary of Labor is the head of the Department of Labor who exercises control over the department and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all other issues involving any form of business-person controversies....

  • Rosalind Chao
    Rosalind Chao
    Rosalind Chao is a Chinese American actress. Chao's most prolific roles have been as a star of CBS' AfterMASH portraying South Korean refugee Soon-Lee Klinger for both seasons, and the recurring character Keiko O'Brien with 27 appearances on the syndicated science fiction series Star Trek: The...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙家玲), American actress
  • Yuen Ren Chao
    Yuen Ren Chao
    Chao Yuen Ren was a Chinese American linguist and amateur composer. He made important contributions to the modern study of Chinese phonology and grammar....

     (traditional Chinese: 趙元任), Chinese linguist
    Linguistics
    Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....

  • Mark Chao
    Mark Chao
    Mark Chao was born on 25 September 1984. He is a Taiwanese-Canadian actor, singer and model. Who graduated from University of Victoria, Canada. His agency is Prajna Works -Television series:-Films:-MV:* Crying Out by CoLoR...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙又廷), Taiwanese actor, singer and model
  • Cecil Chao, Sze-Tsung (traditional Chinese: 趙世曾), Hong Kong entrepreneur
  • Peter Chao, Chinese-Canadian comedian on youtube
    YouTube
    YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

  • Bondy Chiu
    Bondy Chiu
    Bondy Hok Yee Chiu is an actress and singer with Television Broadcasts Limited in Hong Kong. She is best known for her role as Lam Yuk Lo the long-running TVB series Virtues of Harmony...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙學而), Hong Kong singer and actress
  • Angie Chiu
    Angie Chiu
    Angie Chiu , born 15 November 1954 in Hong Kong is an actress, and was the third runner up in the 1973 Miss Hong Kong pageant...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙雅芝), Hong Kong actress, third runner up in the 1973 Miss Hong Kong pageant
    Miss Hong Kong Pageant
    The Miss Hong Kong Pageant , or MSHK for short, is a beauty pageant organized by the leading Hong Kong television station, Television Broadcasts ....

  • Bryan Chiu
    Bryan Chiu
    Bryan Chiu is a retired professional Canadian football player who played centre for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League since the 1997 CFL season...

    , retired Canadian professional football player; played Centre for the Montreal Alouettes
    Montreal Alouettes
    The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...

     in the CFL
    Canadian Football League
    The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....

     from 1997 to 2010
  • May Chiu
    May Chiu
    May Chiu is the first Chinese-born Québécoise to have run as a candidate for the Bloc Québécois party in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.In the 2006 federal election she ran against the then-Prime Minister of Canada, Paul Martin in his riding of LaSalle—Émard. Chiu placed second behind Martin with 28.64%...

    , Canadian politician; first Chinese-born Québécoise to have run as a candidate for the Bloc Québécois
    Bloc Québécois
    The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...

     party in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
  • John Cho
    John Cho
    John Yohan Cho is an American actor and musician, best known for his roles in the American Pie films and the Harold & Kumar films . He also starred in the critically acclaimed hit film Better Luck Tomorrow...

    , Korean-born American comedian
  • Margaret Cho
    Margaret Cho
    Margaret Cho is an American comedian, fashion designer, actress, author, and recording artist. Cho is best known for her stand-up routines, through which she critiques social and political problems, especially those pertaining to race and sexuality. She has also directed and appeared in music...

    , American comedian
  • Judy Chu
    Judy Chu
    Judy May Chu, Ph.D. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. She is a member of the Democratic Party....

     (traditional Chinese: 趙美心), American politician and educator
  • Zhao Benshan
    Zhao Benshan
    Zhao Benshan is a Chinese skit and sitcom actor, and recently turned TV director. He appears regularly on the CCTV New Year's Gala.-Biography:...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙本山), comedian/actor/director
  • Zhao Dan
    Zhao Dan
    Zhao Dan was a Chinese actor popular in the golden age of Chinese Cinema.-Biography:Zhao first became famous working in the Mingxing Film Company in the 1930s including playing opposite Zhou Xuan in Street Angel...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙丹), Chinese actor popular during the golden age of Chinese Cinema.
  • Zhao Erfeng
    Zhao Erfeng
    Zhao Erfeng was a Qing official and Chinese bannerman, who belonged to the Plain Blue Banner. He is known for being the last amban in Tibet, appointed in March, 1908. Lien Yu , a Manchu, was appointed as the other amban...

     (warlord)
  • Zhao Erxun
    Zhao Erxun
    Zhao Erxun was the brother of Zhao Erfeng. He was the governor of Hubei and Sichuan and viceroy and governor of Fengtian....

     (governor of Sichuan)
  • Zhao Hongbo
    Zhao Hongbo
    Zhao Hongbo is a male Chinese pair skater. With his partner and wife Shen Xue, Zhao is the 2010 Olympic champion, the 2002 & 2006 Olympic bronze medalist, a three-time World champion, a three-time Four Continents Champion and a six-time Grand Prix Final champion.Shen and Zhao were the first...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙宏博), a pairs figure skater
    Figure skating
    Figure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...

  • Zhao Jingshen
    Zhao Jingshen
    Zhao Jingshen was a popular Chinese novelist. Born in Lishui, Zhejiang, he was a member of the Seminar in literature. He also contributed to the field of translation and XiQu and made a great success. He also funded some outstanding writers....

     (traditional Chinese: 趙景深), novelist.
  • Zhao Jiping
    Zhao Jiping
    Zhao Jiping is a Chinese composer from Shaanxi. He is best known for his film scores for the Fifth Generation Chinese director Zhang Yimou.Zhao studied at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing.-Film scores:...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙季平), composer
  • Zhao Mengfu
    Zhao Mengfu
    Zhao Mengfu courtesy name Ziang , pseudonyms Songxue , Oubo , and Shuijing-gong Dao-ren , was a prince and descendant of the Song Dynasty, and a Chinese scholar, painter and calligrapher during the Yuan Dynasty.He was recommended by the Censor-in-chief Cheng Jufu to pay an audience...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙孟頫), calligrapher
    Calligraphy
    Calligraphy is a type of visual art. It is often called the art of fancy lettering . A contemporary definition of calligraphic practice is "the art of giving form to signs in an expressive, harmonious and skillful manner"...

    .
  • Zhao Shawn (traditional Chinese: 趙晟暘), telebroadcaster for "Unami Tube"
  • Zhao Shuli
    Zhao Shuli
    Zhao Shuli was a novelist and a leading figure of modern Chinese literature. Born in 1906 in Qinshui County 沁水縣, Shanxi Province, he was originally called 趙樹禮, which, in Mandarin Chinese, was a homophone of the name he later adopted in his adult career....

     (traditional Chinese: 趙樹理), novelist
  • Zhao Wei
    Zhao Wei
    Zhao Wei is a mainland Chinese film actress and pop singer. Audiences sometimes refer to her by her English name, Vicki Zhao...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙薇, simplified Chinese: 赵薇), actress
  • Zhao Wenzhuo
    Vincent Zhao
    Vincent Zhao Wenzhuo , sometimes credited as Chiu Man-cheuk, is a Chinese actor and martial artist. Zhao is best known playing the role of Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung in the Once Upon a Time in China film and television series.-Early life:Zhao was born in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China, as the...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙文卓), martial artist and actor
  • Zhao Yabo (Adult entertainer)
  • Zhao Yanlei, (simplified Chinese: 赵燕雷), Chinese lawyer
  • Zhao Yiman
    Zhao Yiman
    Zhao Yiman ; 1905—August 2, 1936) was a Chinese fighter in the resistance against Japanese forces in the Second Sino-Japanese War, which later became a part of the World War II. She fought in China's northeast where she was captured and executed by Japanese forces in 1936...

     (simplified Chinese: 赵一曼), Chinese freedom fighter
  • Zhao Yongsheng
    Zhao Yongsheng
    Zhao Yongsheng is a retired male race walker from PR China. He competed for his native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics.-Achievements:-References:*...

    , race walker
  • Zhao Zilong
    Zhao Yun
    Zhao Yun was a military general who lived during the late Han Dynasty and early Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. For most of his career, Zhao served the warlord Liu Bei, playing a part in the establishment of state of Shu Han...

     (traditional Chinese: 趙子龍), general during the era of Three Kingdoms
    Three Kingdoms
    The Three Kingdoms period was a period in Chinese history, part of an era of disunity called the "Six Dynasties" following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty rulers. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the state of Wei in 220 and the...

    .
  • Zhao Zheng, royal bloodline.
  • Zhao Zong-Yuan
    Zhao Zong-Yuan
    Zhao Zong-Yuan is an Australian chess Grandmaster. He is the current Australian Chess Champion and number one ranked chess player in Australia.-Early life:...

     Chinese-Australian chess
    Chess
    Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...

     grandmaster
  • Zhao juan [Vice president – Steel projects Dalian]
  • Jackie Zhao A Chinese-American Ghost Hunter on the show The Othersiders
    The Othersiders
    The Othersiders is an American paranormal reality television series that premiered on June 17, 2009 on the Cartoon Network. The program follows a group of five teenagers who are interested in the paranormal and explore reportedly haunted sites to discover any paranormal activity. Aimed for a teen...

  • Geer Zhao (Mandopop
    Mandopop
    Mandopop is a colloquial abbreviation for "Mandarin popular music." It is categorized as a subgenre of commercial Chinese-language music within C-pop. Mandopop was the first variety of popular music in Chinese to establish itself as a viable industry. As the name implies, Mandopop features songs...

     singer)

External links

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