Wu (surname)
Wu is the Pinyin transliteration of the Chinese surname 吳 (Traditional Chinese), 吴 (Simplified Chinese), which is the tenth most common surname in Mainland China. Several other, less common Chinese surnames with different pronunciations are also translated into English as "Wu": 武, 伍, 仵, 烏, 鄔 and 巫. The Cantonese and Hakka transliteration of 吴 is Ng, a syllable made entirely of a nasal consonant while the Min Nan transliteration of 吴 is Goh or Ngoh, depending on the regional variations in Min Nan pronunciation. In Vietnamese, many of those are read differently, for example Võ or Vũ for 武, Ngô for 吳, Ô for 烏.
Wu (or Woo or Wou) is also the Cantonese transliteration of the different Chinese surname 胡 (see Hu), used in Hong Kong, and by overseas Chinese of Cantonese speaking areas of Guangdong, or Hong Kong origin.
吳 is also one of the most common surnames in Korea. It is spelled 오 in Hangul and romanized O by the three major romanization systems, but more commonly spelled Oh in South Korea. It is also related far back in Chinese history with the name "Zhou".
People named Wu
(in alphabetical order according to their names as spelled in Pinyin, or if unavailable, in English)
Wū (巫)
Wū (鄔 or 邬)
- 鄔君梅 (邬君梅) - Wu Junmei (Vivian Wu), Chinese actress
Wú (吳 or 吴)
- 吳家俊 - Ngo, Jonathan, Canadian author
- 吳宇森 (吴宇森) - Woo, John, film director
- 吳光正 (吴光正) - Woo Kwong Ching, Peter, Hong Kong entrepreneur, billionaire and politician
- 吳辰君 (吴辰君) - Annie Wu 吳辰君, Taiwanese Actress
- 吳百福 (吴百福) - Wu Baifu (Ando, Momofuku) (1910–2007), Taiwanese-born Japanese inventor of instant noodles
- 吳邦國 (吴邦国) - Wu Bangguo, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the PRC
- 吳尊 - Wu Chun, Brunei-born actor and singer in Taiwanese band Fahrenheit
- 吳健雄 (吴健雄) - Wu Chien-Shiung, Chinese scientist
- 吳彥祖 (吴彦祖) - Wu, Daniel, American actor
- 吳凱文 (吴凯文) - Wu, Kevin, American internet personality
- 吳振偉 (吴振伟) - Wu, David, congressman from the 1st district of Oregon
- 吳憲 (吴宪) - Wu, Hsien (1893-1959), an early protein scientist
- Jason Wu, American fashion designer
- 吳鑑泉 (吴鉴泉) - Wu Jianquan (1870–1942), Taijiquan teacher
- 吳嘉文 (吴嘉文) - Wu Jiawen, table tennis captain from Australia
- 吳景滔 (吴景滔) - Wu Jingtao, Ian, Chinese child actor from Hong Kong, Won Best Supporting Actor at the Taipei Golden Horse Awards in 2006
- 吴立红 - Wu Lihong, environmental activist
- 吳蠻 (吴蛮) - Wu Man, pipa and ruan player
- 吳明瑛 (吴明瑛) - Wu Mingying (Nancy Wu), Chinese actress
- 吳慶瑞 (吴庆瑞) - Wu Qingrui (Goh Keng Swee, 1918–2010), former Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore
- 吳蕊思 (吴蕊思) - Wu Ruisi (Goh, Theresa Rui Si), Singaporean Paralympic swimmer
- 吳三桂 (吴三桂) - Wu Sangui (1612-1678), Chinese general who supported the Manchus in their invasion of China after the fall of the Ming Dynasty in 1644
- 吳天明 (吴天明) - Wu Tianming, Chinese film director
- 吳文俊 - Wu Wenjun, Chinese mathematician
- 吳儀 (吴仪) - Wu Yi, Vice-premier of the People's Republic of China
- 呉子良 - Wu Ziliang, the birthname of Emi Suzuki, Japanese model of Chinese descent
- 吳作棟 (吴作栋) - Wu Zuodong (Goh Chok Tong), former Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore, current Senior Minister of Singapore and the chairman of the central bank of Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore
Wǔ (伍)
- 伍连德 - Wu Lien-teh, Chinese physician and plague fighter
- Wu, Melissa, Australian diver
- 伍家球 - Wu, William F., science fiction author
- 伍子胥 - Wu Zixu, general in the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history
Wǔ (武)
- 武承嗣 - Wu Chengsi
- 武松 - Wu Song, hero from the Chinese classic Outlaws of the Marsh.
- 武则天 - Wu Zetian
Uncategorized
- Wu, Frank, science-fiction artist