The Hu Surname#

Surname: Hu, Pronunciation: hú

Regions Where the Hu Surname is Found#

An Ding County, Gansu Province; Xin Cai County, Henan Province.

Origins of the Hu Surname#

The origin of the “Hu” surname can be traced to several sources:

1. It originated from the “Gui” surname, with people taking the name of their ancestor as their surname. According to the “Yuanhe Xing Zuan” (Compilation of Surnames from the Yuan He Era), in the early Western Zhou Dynasty, Hu Gong Man, a descendant of Shun, was enfeoffed in the state of Chen (present-day Huaiyang, Henan) but later his state was conquered by the state of Chu. His relatives dispersed, and some of them adopted the name “Hu” as their surname in honor of their ancestor.
2. It also originated from the “Gui” surname, with people taking the name of a state as their surname. During the Zhou Dynasty, there was a vassal state called “Hu” in Fuyang County, Anhui, which was conquered by the state of Chu. Some of its people adopted “Hu” as their surname.
3. The surname evolved from a compound surname of the Xianbei ethnic group. According to the “Wei Shu · Guan Shi Zhi” (Book of Wei · Records of Official Families), during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there was a compound surname “Hu Gu Shi” in the Northern Wei Dynasty (belonging to the brother of Emperor Xian of Wei). After the people of this surname moved south to Luoyang with Emperor Xiaowen of Wei, they adopted the Han surname “Hu”.
4. Additionally, according to the “Zhou Shu · Li Yuan Zhuan” (Book of Zhou · Biography of Li Yuan), the Khitan people also had the Hu surname.

Notable People with the Hu Surname#

• Hu Anguo (1074–1138): Also known as Kang Hou, from Chong'an, Jianning. He was a Confucian scholar of the Song Dynasty and held the position of Zhong Shu She Ren (a high-ranking official). When Wang Anshi abolished the study of the Spring and Autumn Annals, Hu Anguo believed it to be an essential text passing down the teachings of the ancient sages and continued to study it for twenty years. He was posthumously awarded the title “Wen Ding” and wrote works such as “Chun Qiu Chuan” (Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals) and “Zi Zhi Tong Jian Ju Yao Bu Yi” (Supplements to the Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Government).
• Ho Chi Minh (1890–1969): Originally named Nguyen Bac Thanh, he was the leader of the Vietnamese national liberation movement and the president of the Republic of Vietnam. He was born in Tan County, Yen An, central Vietnam. In 1911, he went to France, joined the French Communist Party in 1920, and founded the magazine “Le Paria” (The Outcast). He received training in the Soviet Union in 1923 and became a member of the Third International. In 1924, he returned to Vietnam to establish the Vietnamese Revolutionary Youth League. In 1930, he returned to his country to establish the Communist Party of Indochina. During the Anti-Japanese War, he was arrested by the Vietnamese government but was later released and returned to Vietnam to fight in the guerrilla warfare. In 1954, he defeated the French forces and established the North Vietnamese regime. He later assisted the South Vietnamese Communists in establishing the Communist Party of Vietnam, which led to the Vietnam War.
• Hu Shi (1891–1962): From Jixi, Anhui. He was a modern Chinese scholar, thinker, and a prominent figure in the New Culture Movement. He earned a Doctor of Philosophy from Columbia University in the United States and received honorary doctorates from numerous universities in both China and the West. While serving as a professor at Peking University, he advocated for literary reform. He also served as the principal of several educational institutions, including Peking University, and held various government positions, including Ambassador to the United States and President of the Academia Sinica. His works include “A History of Ancient Chinese Philosophy,” “Zhang Shi Zhai Nian Pu” (Chronology of Zhang Shi Zhai), “A History of Pre-Qin Philosophy,” “The Philosophy of Dai Dongyuan,” and “A History of Vernacular Literature,” among others.
• Hu Yaobang (1915–1989): A member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.
• Hu Jintao: Current General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, President of the People’s Republic of China, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People’s Republic of China.