The Jia Clan#

Clan Name: Jia, Pronunciation: jiǎ

Distribution of the Jia Clan#

Minqin, Gansu

Origins of the Jia Clan#

The origin of the “Jia” clan can be traced to two main sources:

1. From the Ji Clan: The clan name was derived from a state that was part of the Ji family lineage. According to “Xing Yuan” (A Garden of Surnames), King Kang of Zhou granted Gongming, the younger son of Tang Shuyu, the territory of Jia, and appointed him as the ruler of this small vassal state, known as Jia Bo. Later, when the state of Jia was conquered by the state of Jin, Gongming’s descendants adopted the name of their former state, “Jia”, as their clan name.

2. From the Name of a City: After the conquest of Jia by the state of Jin, the area became a city named Jia Ji. The empress of Emperor Hui of Jin was a descendant of this clan.

Population of the Jia Clan

Today, the Jia clan has a population of nearly 3.7 million, ranking 69th among the most common surnames in China, accounting for approximately 0.29% of the national population. Over the past 600 years, since the Ming Dynasty, the population of the Jia clan has increased by more than 14 times, from 250,000 to 3.7 million. This growth rate is faster than the national average (although many surnames have experienced significant population increases). The distribution of the Jia clan is predominantly concentrated in the provinces of Hebei, Henan, and Shanxi, which together account for about 45% of the total Jia clan population. Other major populations are found in Shandong, Gansu, Heilongjiang, Sichuan, and Shaanxi, which together account for another 25%. Hebei is the province with the largest number of Jia clan members, accounting for 18% of the total. The Jia clan has formed two regions with high population densities: the northern regions of Henan, Hebei, and Shanxi, and the southern region of Sichuan.

Notable Figures with the Jia Surname

• Jia Sixie (472–499): A renowned agronomist of the Northern Wei Dynasty, author of the book “Qi Min Yao Shu” (Essential Techniques for the People), which holds an important place in the history of Chinese and world agronomy.
• Jia Dan (730–805): A famous statesman and geographer, best known for his work “Hai Nei Hua Yi Tu” (Map of China’s Inner and Outer Regions) and other geographical writings. Jia Dan contributed significantly to the development of scientific cartography methods that influenced later generations.
• Jia Xian: A distinguished mathematician of the Northern Song Dynasty, known for his contributions to trigonometry and innovative mathematical methods, such as the “Jia Xian Triangle” and the “Zeng Cheng Kai Fa” (Method of Successive Multiplication and Expansion).