The Che Family#

Surname: Che, pronounced as “chē”

Regions where the Che surname is prevalent#

• Lu State: During the Western Han Dynasty, Xue County was renamed Lu State, with its administrative center located in Lu County (present-day Qufu, Shandong).
• Nanping Commandery: Later renamed Nan Commandery during the Jin Dynasty; its administrative center was located in Zuo Tang (the ancient city is north of present-day Anxiang, Hunan).
• Henan Commandery: Established during the Han Dynasty; its administrative center was in Luoyang (the ancient city is northeast of present-day Luoyang, Henan).
• Jingzhao Commandery: Established during the Han Dynasty; its administrative center was in Chang’an (the ancient city is northwest of present-day Xi’an, Shaanxi).
• Huainan Commandery: Established during the Han Dynasty; its administrative center was in Shouchun (present-day Shou County, Anhui).

Origins of the Che surname#

There are five origins for the Che surname:

1. Derived from the Gui surname: According to “Yuanhe Xingzuan” and “Han Shu,” descendants of the Tian family from the era of Emperor Shun. Qianqiu, a prime minister of the Han Dynasty, was allowed to use a small carriage due to his age, and people called him “Prime Minister Che”; his descendants adopted this surname.
2. Derived from the Ying surname: According to “Lu Shi,” descendants of the Ziche family from the Qin State during the Spring and Autumn Period also adopted the Che surname.
3. Derived from the “Shiben” records: It is said that Che Qu, a minister of the Yellow Emperor, was skilled in astrology, which is considered the beginning of the Che surname.
4. Awarded as a surname: According to “Shengjun Chuzheng Ji,” Che Yan, a military commander from the Ming Dynasty, was originally surnamed Xin. For his military achievements during the Hongwu period, he was granted the surname Che.
5. Derived from other ethnic groups: According to the “Wei Shu · Guanshi Zhi,” the Che surname in Henan originated from the Xianbei people. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, the surnames Che and Che Fei were changed to Che. The Che family from the Western Regions also adopted this surname; the Oroqen tribe’s Teghege clan adopted the Chinese surname Che. During the Qing Dynasty, people from Goryeo settled in Pingyang (present-day Linfen, Shanxi). This surname is also found among the Korean, Manchu, Mongolian, Hui, and Bai ethnic groups.

Ancestor of the Che surname

Che Qianqiu was from Changling, Fengyi (northeast of present-day Xianyang, Shaanxi) and was a high-ranking official of the Western Han Dynasty. A descendant of the Tian family from the Warring States period, he initially served as a court official. During the “Wugu Incident,” he defended the deceased crown prince from accusations by Jiang Chong. Emperor Wu was moved by his actions and promoted him nine times, leading to the famous story of his rapid rise. He later became prime minister and was granted the title of Marquis of Fumin. During his tenure as prime minister, he advised the emperor to show mercy and relax the laws. He also assisted Emperor Zhao (the young emperor) alongside Huo Guang. Known for his wisdom and integrity, his reputation surpassed that of his predecessors and successors. In his old age, the emperor allowed him to use a small carriage to enter the palace, and thus his descendants adopted the surname Che, considering him the ancestor of the Che family.

Clan names (Tanghao): Yingzhao, Yufeng, Huainan, Huan Du, Gaolu, etc.

Distribution of the Che surname

The Che surname ranks 197th among the most common surnames in China, with a population accounting for about 0.04% of the total Han population. The invasions by non-Han ethnic groups at the end of the Song Dynasty and the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty led to the spread of the Che surname across regions such as Fujian and Guangdong. During the early Ming Dynasty, Che people from Shanxi, along with others from Hongtong, were relocated to Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shandong, and Hebei. From the mid-Ming Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, some Che people moved to Taiwan and Southeast Asia. Additionally, due to migrations from Shandong to the Northeast, Shanxi to Gansu, Henan to Shaanxi, and Huguang to Sichuan, the Che surname spread to the northwest, northeast, and southwest of China.

Clan characteristics:

• The Che surname has two main branches: one descended from Prime Minister Che, and the other from the Xianbei people. If the Che surname indeed originates from Che Qu, the history of the surname would be even more ancient.
• Che Yin, the protagonist of the idiom “Nangying Zhaodu” (using fireflies to read by light), is a model of diligent study and serves as an excellent example for educating children.