Yan (surname)
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Yan is a Chinese surname, it is the pinyin romanization for several Chinese characters such as "严 (嚴)", "晏 (晏)", "偃 (偃)", "颜 (顏)", "言 (言)", "燕 (燕)", "阎 (閻)", "闫 (閆)", "鄢 (鄢)" in simplified (traditional) form. Note that these characters are spelled as Yen in the Wade–Giles romanization system which was the prevalent one before the early 80s. From such, individuals and institutions who have had to romanize their Chinese names prior to that time, such as when having their books translated or publishing manuscripts outside of China, used "Yen" instead of "Yan". Such examples include Yenching University and the Harvard-Yenching Institute. The Yan surname in Taiwan is mostly spelled as Yen since only until recently has the government approved the use of pinyin romanization of names. The Cantonese romanization of these surnames is "Yim". As such, most people from Hong Kong and Chinese diaspora that emigrated prior to 1949 from Guangdong use the name Yim. On many occasions, "甄 (甄)" in Cantonese is also romanized as Yan.
严 (嚴)
Romanization | Yan, Yen, Yim, Ngiam |
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Gender | Masculine |
Language(s) | Chinese |
Origin | |
Meaning | "strict" |
The "严 (嚴)" (Yán) surname has various origins:
- In the state of Chu, the branch of Xiong (熊) of the Zhuang surname (莊) was renamed to Yan (嚴).
- Zhuang (莊) family change their names to Yan (嚴) upon the ascension of the Han Ming Emperor, whose personal name was Zhuang, owing to the naming taboo.
- in Qin (state), Ying (嬴) family get surname Yan (嚴), branch of Yíng (Chinese surname)
- during the Ancient, the State of Yan (嚴國) founded, there Citizen get surname Yan (嚴) with title of state
- during the Sixteen Kingdoms, the royal of Xianbei get surname Yan (嚴), branch of Liu family the Xiongnu
- Chinese Minority the Xibe people, Yi people, Tu people use surname Yan (嚴)
- Also known as Yim
Notable people
- Yan Yan, a general of the state of Shu Han during the era of the Three Kingdoms
- Yen Chia-lin
- Yen Chia-kan (born 1905–1993), President of Taiwan 1975-1978
- Yan Fu (born 1854), Chinese scholar
- Geling Yan (born 1958), Chinese writer
- Yim Ho (born 1952) Hong Kong film directors, leader of Hong Kong New Wave
- Yan Jiaqi (born 1942), Chinese political scientist and dissident
- Yan Jinxuan (born 1924), Chinese composer of The White Haired Girl
- Yan Junqi (born 1946), Vice chairwoman of the standing committee of the National People's Congress of China
- Yan Pei-Ming (born 1960), Chinese-born French painter
- Yan Shimin (born 1987), Chinese rower
- Yan Shunkai (born 1937), Chinese comedian, actor and director
- Sophia Yan (born 1986), American classical pianist
- Yim Wing-chun, a Chinese legendary character, often cited in Wing Chun legends as the first master of the martial art bearing her name
- Yan Yikuan (born 1979), Chinese actor and singer
- Yen-j (born 1988), Taiwanese singer and actor
阎 (閻)
Romanization | Yan |
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Yan (simplified Chinese: 阎; traditional Chinese: 閻) surname from Ji (姬) family of Zhou Dynasty, and some other surname Yan merge to Yan (閻) in the East Asian Nation.
- Yan Su (1930-2016), Chinese lyricist and screenwriter
- Yan Chongnian (born 1934) Chinese historian
- Yan Weiwen (born 1957), Chinese opera singer with origins in the People's Liberation Army
- Yan Lianke (born 1958), Chinese writer of novels and short stories
- Yan Sen (born 1975), Chinese table tennis player
- Yan Shipeng (born 1987), Chinese football player
- Yan Song (footballer) (born 1981), Chinese footballer
- Yan Xuetong (born 1952), Dean of the Institute of Modern International Relations at Tsinghua University
- Yan Fang, Chinese softball player
- Yan Hong, Chinese race walker
闫 (閆)
Romanization | Yan |
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Yan (simplified Chinese: 闫; traditional Chinese: 閆) is the same as Yan (閻), only the shape of writing.
- Yan Feng
- Yan Han (figure skater), Chinese figure skater
- Yan Meizhu (born 1989), Chinese team handball player
- Yan Ni (born 1971), Chinese actress
- Yan Xiangchuang (born 1986), Chinese footballer
- Yan An (born 1996), Chinese member of a Korean boy group PENTAGON[1]
颜 (顏)
Romanization | Hokkien: Gan Cantonese: Ngan Vietnamese: Nhan Korean: An |
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Gender | Masculine |
Language(s) | Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese |
Origin | |
Meaning | "colour" |
Also known as Gan in Hokkien or Ngan in Cantonese
- Catherine Yan (颜华菲), Chinese and American mathematician
- Gan Kim Yong, Singapore politician
- Yan Junling, Chinese football goalkeeper
- Ngan Lok Fung, Hong Kong football midfielder
- Yen Shui-long, Taiwanese painter and sculptor
- Yan Hui, disciple of Confucius
- Yan Huiqing, Chinese writer, politician, and diplomat from Shanghai
- Kevin Ngan, Hong Kong fencer
- Yan Jeou-rong, Taiwanese politician
- Gan Eng Seng, Chinese businessman and philanthropist who was one of the early pioneers of Singapore
- Yen Hsing-su, also known as Johnny Yen, Taiwanese basketball player
- Johnny Ngan, Hong Kong film actor and television actor.
- Yan Bingyan (颜丙燕), Chinese actress
- Brendan Gan, (1988–present) Malaysian footballer
- Yan Zhengzai (顏徵在), mother of Confucius
- Steven Gan (颜重庆/顏重慶)(1963–present), Malaysian journalist
- Gan Peck Cheng (simplified Chinese: 颜碧贞; traditional Chinese: 顏碧貞; pinyin: Yán Bìzhēn), Malaysian politician
晏
The surname 晏 (Yàn) has three main sources:
Near 600 BC, the minister Yan Ruo (晏弱) of the state of Qi took Yan as his last name after he was assigned to govern the town of Yan (modern day town of Yancheng of Qihe county of Shandong province).
According to the Records of the Grand Historian, the name of the fifth son of Zhuanxu was Yang'an (阳安) who chose to use the surname 晏 for his descendants.
According to the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Yan Long (晏龙), a minister of Emperor Yao is the earliest ancestor of the Yan surname on record.
- Yan Ying (578-500 BC), prime minister of the state of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period.
- An Ruzi (??-489 BC), also known as Yan Ruzi, ruled the state of Qi for a brief period after the death of Duke Jing of Qi.
- Yan Shu (991-1055), writer and politician, served as prime minister during the Song dynasty
- Y. C. James Yen (1890-1990), Chinese educator and organizer known for his literacy work in rural areas around the world.
- Yan Zi (born 1984), Chinese tennis player.
甄
Romanization | Mandarin: Zhen Cantonese: Yan, Yen |
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- Yan Lik Kin (born 1961), Hong Kong football coach
- Martin Yan, Chinese American chef and food writer
- Donnie Yen, Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and multiple-time world wushu tournament champion.
Unknown Chinese
- Yan Huo, American hedge fund manager
- Yan Bingtao, Chinese snooker player
- Yan Feng (athlete) Chinese paralympic athlete competing in throwing events
- Yan Hong (swimmer) (born 1967), Chinese swimmer
- Yan Huilian (born 1983), Chinese archer
- Yan Jiankui (born 1976), Chinese sprinter
- Yan Jing (born 1970), Chinese fencer
- Yan Liang (handballer) (born 1985), Chinese handballer
- Marline Yan, (born 1993), Canadian actress and singer
- Stephen Yan, Hong Kong born Canadian cooking show host of Wok With Yan
- Yan Wei, Chinese middle distance runner
- Yan Xiandong, Chinese fencer
Other Chinese
- Yan Yan (言)(506 BC-??), disciple of Confucius
- Aaron Yan (炎) (born 1986), Taiwanese Mandopop
- Jack Yan (甄) (born 1972), Hong Kong-born New Zealand publisher and businessman
- Jerry Yan (言) (born 1977), Taiwanese actor
- Yan Xing (artist) (鄢), Chinese artist in performance as well as installations, video and photography
Burmese (ရန်ရ)
Romanization | Yan |
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- Yan Aung Kyaw (born 1989), Burmese footballer for Myanmar national football team
- Yan Aung Win (born 1992), Burmese footballer for Myanmar national football team
- Yan Naing Oo (born 1996), Burmese footballer for Myanmar national football team
- Yan Paing (born 1983), Burmese footballer for Myanmar national football team
- Yan Yan Chan, Burmese singer
Other languages
- Amanda Yan, Canadian wheelchair basketball player
- Esteban Yan, Dominican baseball pitcher
- Joseph Yan, Kiribati footballer
- Vitali Yan, Russian football midfielder
- Dennis Yan (born 1997), Russian-American ice hockey player, picked in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft
延
Yan (延) is a Chinese surname. It has various origins:
- during the Han Dynasty, Xirong (西戎) the Loufan (樓煩) get surname Yan (延), branch of Pan (surname) (潘)
- during the Northern Wei (北魏), Emperor Xiaowen (孝文帝) family get surname Yan (延)
- during the Northern Wei (北魏), Xianbei noble's three-syllable surname was reduced to Yan (延)
- during the Ancient, Yue people (越族) Baiyue (百越) get surname Yan (延) in Zhejiang the old Wu (state)
燕
Yan (燕) is Chinese surname. It has various origins:
- during the Ancient China, Ji (姞) family get surname Yan (燕) with title of Nanyan (state) (南燕國)
- during the Zhou Dynasty, Ji (姬) family get surname Yan (燕) with title of Yan (state) (燕國)
- during the Three Kingdoms Period, Wuhuan people use surname Yan (燕)
- Chinese Murong family get surname Yan (燕) with title of Former Yan (前燕)