Chinese Research Helps

China Chinese Research Helps

Several new tools are now available for Chinese speaking researchers. Please click on the links below to open guides that will teach you how to use the Chinese FamilySearch Catalog, how to do Chinese research, and how to use PAF 5.2 Chinese version.

Since, as noted below, different areas of the world where there may be written records in Chinese languages, it may be useful to view this Wikipedia article about the Chinese language as it will help in determining which writing system was used for those records. It is rather technical in nature as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_language

Learning to read Chinese Genealogies 家谱
HELPS FOR READING CHINESE GENEALOGIES

(Note:  While this paper is intended to assist those without Chinese language skills to read Chinese genealogies, the suggestions included below are for those who have at least a basic skill to recognize Chinese characters and distinguish them one from another.)

In the history of the Chinese people, there are three important elements that are significant. They are China's history, the local gazetteer, and a clan's genealogy. Among these three elements, genealogy has the longest history and is the most influential.

Clan or lineage genealogies constitute the major source material for Chinese family historians and genealogists. Scholars have shown that clan genealogies can be a valuable source for research into Chinese history. Since most genealogies continue into the early or mid twentieth century, a researcher who can connect into a lineage genealogy can often determine their pedigree quickly and accurately back to the 1600s and, typically, much further.

The history of written Chinese genealogy goes back to at least the 11th century B.C.  Based on the content of the earliest written pedigrees, one can confidently conclude that they were based on pre-existing oral pedigrees. Most extant genealogies, however, were compiled during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) or later.

Terms for Chinese Genealogies

Chinese genealogies are commonly referred to as:

家譜 (jiāpǔ) – family genealogy record

族譜 (zúpǔ) – clan genealogy record

宗譜 (zōngpǔ) – general genealogy record

Other terms for Chinese genealogies include:

房譜 (fángpǔ)          譜錄 (pǔlù)              家記 (jiājī)

世譜 (shìpǔ) 統譜 (tǒngpǔ) 家志 (jiāzhi)

支譜 (zhīpǔ) 通譜 (tōngpǔ) 會譜 (hùipǔ)

分譜 (fènpǔ)            譜牒 (pǔdíe) 牒誌 (díezhì)

譜系 (pǔxì) 玉牒 (yudíe) 譜誌 (pǔzhì)

譜傳 (pǔzhuàn) 家乘 (jiāshèng) 族誌 (zúzhì)

Reading Titles of Genealogies

1.  By clan name

Many titles of genealogies simply include the name of the clan.

Example:

王氏家譜 (wáng shì jiā pǔ)  - The Wang Clan Genealogy

王 (wáng) – the surname Wang

氏 (shì) – designates clan or surname

家譜 (jiāpǔ) - genealogy

 

2.  By branch, location, or ancestor

The Chinese have a segmentary lineage system. This means that it has many nested branches or segments that trace their roots back to an early common ancestor. Each segment or group of segments may compile its own genealogy, and finally there may be a genealogy that includes all of the segments. Therefore, titles may include branch names, place names, or ancestor names that identify the segment or group.

A.  Example by branch name:

太原堂温氏族譜 (tài yuán táng wēn shì zú pǔ) – The Taiyuan Branch, Wen Clan Genealogy

太原堂 – The Taiyuan Branch

温 (wēn) – the surname Wen

氏 (shì) – designates clan or surname

族譜 (zúpǔ) – genealogy

Terminology for lineage branch or segment:

堂號 (tánghào) – lineage branch or segment

派 (pài) – lineage branch or segment

B.  Example by location:

福建寜德九都貴村王氏宗譜 (fú jiàn nìng dé jiǔ dū gùi cūn wàng shì zōng pǔ) -- The Fujian (Province) Ningde (City) Jiudugui Village Wang Clan Genealogy

福建 (fújiàn) – Fujian (Province)

寜德 (nìngdé) – Ningde (City)

九都貴村 (jiǔdūgùi cūn) – Jiudugui Village

王 (wáng) – the surname Wang

氏 (shì) – designates clan or surname

宗譜 (zōngpǔ) – genealogy

Terminology for locations:

里 (lǐ) – village

村 (cūn) – village-hamlet

鄉 (xiāng) – village-rural

閭 (lǘ) – village of 25 families

城 (chéng) - municipality

市 (shì) - city

邑 (yì) – a city or county

埠 (bù) – city-port

區 (qū) – district

地 (dì) - region

府 (fǔ) - prefecture

縣 (xiàn) – county

省 (shěng) - province

國 (guó) - country

C.  Example by ancestor name:

學登本祖家譜 (xúe dēng běn zǔ jiā pǔ) – The Xuedeng Originating Ancestor Genealogy

學登 (xúe dēng) – Lin Xuedeng, an ancestor of a branch of the Lin

family that settled in the Xinhui area of

Guangdong Province

本祖 (běn zǔ) – originating ancestor

家譜 (jiā pǔ) - genealogy

Terminology for ancestors:

祖 (zǔ) - ancestor

始 (shǐ) – the beginning

遷 (qiān) – to move

受姓 (shòu xìng) – to receive a surname

There are three key ancestors in genealogies:

受姓始祖 (shòu xìng shǐ zǔ) - the ancestor who received the surname (usually during the Zhou dynasty, 1046-222 B.C.)

始祖 (shǐ zǔ) - the first ancestor (who founded the lineage most often during the Tang, A.D. 618-907 or Song, 960-1279, dynasties)

始遷祖 (shǐ qiān zǔ) and the first migrant ancestor (who founded the lineage which compiled the genealogy most often from the Ming dynasty, 1368-1644, onward).

 

Reading Genealogy Narrative Sections

 

Genealogy collections generally include a brief history of the origin of the family and the dispersion pattern of some of the branches. Contents may also feature explanations of surname origin, biographies on progenitor ancestors, notations of outstanding ancestors, family rules and obligations regarding customs and rites, exhortations for righteous living, poems for generational names, and many other topics.

These sections are the most difficult for those having limited Chinese language capability. Most often, assistance will be required from one proficient not only in reading Chinese vernacular but classical Chinese texts as well. Nonetheless, for a novice Chinese reader a familiarity of the complexities of Chinese names in genealogical records could be useful in gleaning useful information from these sections.

'''Chinese name order'''

 

A complete Chinese name can consist of two or three characters. The first character is the family or clan name known as the surname name in English while the personal name may contain a middle and last character. Notice that the surname location is the reverse order to English practice, e.g. 毛澤東 (Máo Zédōng), where 毛 (Máo) was his surname and 澤東 (Zédōng) was his given name. Sometimes, a complete name can consist of only two characters, e.g. 陳豫 (Chén Yù) where the surname is 陳 (Chén) and the given name is 豫 (Yù). Single character surnames are the most common, like 楊 (Yáng) and 周 (Zhōu), but there are also a small number of two character surnames, like 歐楊 (Ōuyáng) and 司馬 (Sīmǎ).

Generation Names

After the family or clan name known as a surname in English comes the middle name or family hierarchy name, also called the Generation Name.

Men belonging to the same generation within a clan will share a common name, which can be positioned either in the middle or at the end. This name serves as a classifier to the hierarchical ranking for the generations as specified in the clan's Generation Poem (字輩詞 – zì bèi cí), and is referred to as the Generation Name (輩字 – bèi zì).

'''Multiple/Alternate Names'''

 

A person may have more than one name, especially depending on life he or she is in. Genealogical records may use just one of these names but may also specify a number of names for an individual. Types of names include:

小名 (xiǎo míng) – birth/infant name, given at birth. Also referred to as 乳名 (rǔ míng) – milk name.

名 (míng) – official name, used during youth, given roughly at 3 months. Also referred to as 大名 (dà míng).

字 (zì) -  school name, style name, or courtesy name, given at age 20 during a Coming of Age Ceremony (成年禮 – chéng nián lǐ). Also referred to as 表名 (biǎo míng).

號 (hào) – assumed name, literary name, or pseudonym, may be created by an individual himself or may be given to him by others, conferred when one becomes established in life. Can also refer to the 諡號 (shì hào) - posthumous name given to rulers, nobleman, or eminent officials, or the 廟號 (miào hào) -  temple name, given posthumously for inclusion in the clan temple.

諱 (huì) – taboo name, given to a deceased emperor or head of family

Example:

This selection is taken from a 温 (Wēn) clan genealogy. Note that in Chinese genealogies, the surname is not repeated in names throughout the record. In this narrative, it begins by referring to the progenitor by his taboo name, 諱 - 敬 (Jìng); his school name, 字 - 周穆 (Zhōumù); and his assumed name, 號 - 文寕 (Wénníng).

'''Reading Genealogy Pedigree Charts and Genealogical Tables'''

 

Chinese genealogies generally include:

▪      A list of male ancestors’ names according to generation order

▪      The birth year, death year, or burial year of the ancestor, if known

▪      The maiden surname of the spouse, if known

▪      The number and names of the male descendants of each couple, if known

'''Line Pedigree Chart and Genealogical Table'''

This information may be presented in various formats. Pedigree charts are often presented in a tree-like structure, a simple line chart with generations of male ancestor’s names cascading downwards from a single progenitor. (Note:  The pedigree information in Chinese genealogies is a paternal system, i.e., names of daughters are not included.  When daughters marry, they are considered a part of their husband’s family.) In this format, the maiden surname of the wife or wives/concubines is listed adjacent to the male ancestor’s name. A separate genealogical table with lists of the birth and death years, and burial dates and locations may follow. The genealogical table may also include education, official rank, and achievements of the male ancestors.

Example of a tree-structured pedigree chart:

Example of a genealogical table:

Descendant List Pedigree Format

Another oft-used pedigree format is a descendant list, beginning with the name of a progenitor ancestor on the right and succeeding generations of listed laterally to the left. A variation of this is for the progenitor’s first-born son and subsequent first-borne grandsons to be listed vertically downwards on the right, while the brothers of the first-born are listed laterally on the left. In this sort of format, data regarding the birth and death years, and burial dates and locations may be listed adjacent to the ancestors’ names.

Example of descendant list pedigree format

Chinese numerals:

Pedigree charts and genealogical tables often use Chinese numerals to number generations and sons. Chinese numerals are also used in dates. While common Chinese numbers are most often used, occasionally shorthand forms may be used. Another system of more complex characters, known as financial or “anti-fraud” numerals, can also be found in use in genealogical records. The table below represents various Chinese numerals that one may encounter:

Normal or Other

Financial

Pinyin

Value

一 or 正

壹

yī

one

二 or 弍

貳

èr

two

三 or 弎

參

sān

three

四

肆

sì

four

五

伍

wǔ

five

六

陸

liù

six

七

柒

qī

seven

八

捌

bā

eight

九

玖

jiǔ

nine

十

拾

shí

ten

十一

拾壹

shí yī

eleven

十二

拾貳

shí èr

twelve

十三

拾參

shí sān

thirteen

二十 or 廿

貳拾

èr shí or niàn

twenty

二十一 or 廿一

貳拾壹

èr shí yī or niàn yī

twenty-one

二十二 or 廿二

貳拾貳

èr shí èr or niàn èr

twenty-two

三十 or 卅

參拾

sān shí or sà

thirty

百

佰

bǎi

hundred

千

仟

qiān

thousand

Terminology for pedigree charts:

一世祖 (yī shì zǔ) – the first generation ancestor, more often referred to as 始祖 (shǐ zǔ)

二世祖 (èr shì zǔ) – second generation ancestors

三世祖 (sān shì zǔ) – third generation ancestors

四世祖 (sì shì zǔ) – fourth generation ancestors

公 (gōng) – following a name, a respectful term of address for an elderly man, e.g., 張公 – the revered Mr. Zhang

翁 (wēng) - following a name, a respectful term of address for an elderly man or father, e.g., 周公 – the revered Mr. Zhou

妣 (bǐ) – a formal term for one’s deceased mother, used to designate a spouse

娶 (qǔ) – to take as wife

配 (pèi) – joined in marriage, used to designate a spouse

氏 (shì) – when following a spouse’s surname, a term equivalent to the French word “nee”, meaning “surname at birth”.

生 (shēng) -- birth

終 (zhōng) – end, the end of life

歿 (mò) – to die

卒 (zú) – to die

生於 (shēng yú) – born on (date)

終於 (zhōng yú) – died on (date)

墓 (mù) – a grave

墓於 (mù yú) – buried on (date) or buried at (place)

墓在 (mù zài) – buried at

生 (shēng) – begat, when followed by 子 (zǐ) – son, or multiple sons, e.g., 二子 – two sons, 三子 – three sons, etc.

長子 (zhǎng zǐ) – the eldest son

次子 (cì zǐ) – the second son

三子 (sān zǐ) – the third son

四子 (sì zǐ) – the fourth son

Example of reading a tree structured pedigree chart:

1.  五世祖 – Fifth generation ancestor

以教 – Yijiao (ancestor’s name) 翁 – respectful term

米氏 – Mi, surname at birth (spouse of Yijiao)

2.  六世祖 – Sixth generation ancestor

萬秋 – Wanqiu (ancestor’s name)

米氏 – Mi, surname at birth (spouse of Wanqiu)

3.  七世祖 – Seventh generation ancestors

廷豹 – Tingbao (ancestor’s name, elder brother)

梁氏 – Liang, surname at birth (spouse of Tingbao)

廷潔 – Tingjie (ancestor’s name, younger brother)

曾氏 – Zeng, surname at birth (spouse of Tingjie

Example of reading a descendant list pedigree

1.  三世祖 – Third generation ancestor

諱 (taboo name) – 興 Xing (ancestor’s name)

字 (style name) – 有德 Youde

號 (literary name) – 泰松 Taisong

係 (xì) – relationship:  中孚公之長子 – oldest son of revered Mr.

Zhongfu

2.  三世妣 – Third generation spouses

王氏 - Wang, surname at birth (spouse of Youde)

麥氏 - Mai, surname at birth (spouse of Youde)

鍾氏 - Zhong, surname at birth (spouse of Youde)

生二子 – Begat two sons

3.  長 – Eldest (son) 來福 - Laifu

次 – Second (son) 來鳯 – Laifeng

Reading Chinese Calendar Dates

Before the start of the Republic of China era in 1911, dates in Chinese genealogies were expressed using the traditional Chinese calendar system. The official name of the Chinese calendar is 農曆 (nóng lì) – the rural calendar. The calendar uses the Chinese sexagenary cycle (六十花甲 – liù shí huā jiǎ), also known as the Stems-and-Branches (干支 – gān zhī), a cycle of sixty terms used for recording years. The sixty different terms consist of two characters, the first representing a term from a cycle of ten known as the Heavenly Stems (天干 – tiān gān) and the second from a cycle of twelve known as the Earthly Branches (地支 – dì zhī). The Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches are listed in the table below:

Heavenly Stems

Pinyin

Earthly Branches

Pinyin

甲

jiǎ

子

zǐ

乙

yǐ

丑

chǒu

丙

bǐng

寅

yín

丁

dīng

卯

mǎo

戊

wù

辰

chén

己

jǐ

巳

sì

庚

gēng

午

wǔ

辛

xīn

未

wèi

壬

rén

申

shēn

癸

guǐ

酉

yǒu 戌

xū   亥

hài

The chart below, entitled “The 60 Year Cyclical Calendar” represents thirteen cycles of the Chinese calendar, for the period 1204-1983.  The sixty terms consisting of the two-character stem-branch combinations are listed on the left and the corresponding years, thirteen years for each term are listed to the right.

Because the terms of the Chinese calendar repeat every sixty years, the particular years are distinguished usually by the 帝號 (dì hào) – the imperial title of the reigning emperor, or the 年號 (nián hào) – the reign title, a designation for the years the emperor was on the throne. The “Nien-Hao Era Date Chart” included below list the imperial titles and and reign years for the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Occasionally, the name of the dynasty is included to distinguish the year. A chart listing the Chinese dynasties is also provided below.

Chinese birth and death dates sometimes include the hour. A chart listing the Chinese terms for hour is also provided below.

Chinese Dynasties

ca. 2100-1600 BC

夏（Xia) Dynasty

ca. 1600-1050 BC

商（Shang) Dynasty

ca. 1046-256 BC

周 (Zhou) Dynasty 西周 (Western Zhou) ca. 1046-771 BC 東周 (Eastern Zhou) ca. 771-256 BC  春秋時代 (Spring  and Autumn Period)

770-ca. 475 BC 戰國時代 (Warring States  Period)

ca. 475-221 BC

206 BC-220 AD

漢 (Han) Dynasty 西漢 (Western/Former Han) 206 BC-9 AD 東漢 (Eastern/Later  Han) 25-220 AD

220-589 AD

六代時期 (Six Dynasties) Period 三國 (Three Kingdoms) 220-265 AD 晋 (Jin Dynasty) 265-420 AD  南北朝 (Period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties) 386-589 AD

581-618 AD

隋 (Sui) Dynasty

618-906 AD

唐 (Tang) Dynasty

907-960 AD

五代時期 (Five Dynasties) Period

960-1279

宋 (Song) Dynasty 北宋 (Northern Song) 960-1127 南宋 (Southern Song) 1127-1279

1279-1368

元 (Yuan) Dynasty

1368-1644

明 (Ming) Dynasty

1644-1912

清 (Qing) Dynasty

1912-1949

中華民國 Republic Period

1949-present

中華人民共和國 People's Republic of China

Chinese Hours

In ancient times, in order to tell the time, the Chinese 24-hour day was divided into twelve equal 2-hour periods called 時 (shí). Each double hour was given the name of one of the 12 earthly branches.

Earthly               Branches

Pinyin Hours

子

zǐ

11:00 PM - 1:00 AM

丑

chǒu

1:00 – 3:00

寅

yín

3:00 – 5:00

卯

mǎo

5:00 – 7:00

辰

chén

7:00 – 9:00

巳

sì

9:00 – 11:00

午

wǔ

11:00 AM – 1:00 PM

未

wèi

1:00 – 3:00

申

shēn

3:00 – 5:00

酉

yǒu

5:00 – 7:00

戌

xū

7:00 – 9:00

亥

hài

9:00 – 11:00

Other terminology for Chinese calendar dates:

年 (nián) - year

月 (yuè) - month

閏 (rùn yuè) – an intercalary (leap) month in the Chinese calendar

日(rì) - day

初 (chū) – in the early part of…used before the earlier days of the month

時 (shí) – hour

Example of reading a Chinese calendar date:

逹穰公陽命生於大清乾隆己未年十二月廿二日戌時,

Name:  逹穰 (Dáráng) 公 (gōng) – the revered Darang

Introductory phrase:  陽命 (yáng mìng) refers to lifespan

Event:  生於 (shēng yú) – born on…

Dynasty:  大清 (dà qīng) – The great Qing Dynasty

Reign title:  乾隆 (qián lóng)

Year:  己未 (jǐ wèi) - 1740 (This year mostly corresponds with 1739, but this date falls at the end of 己未 and extends into early 1740.)

Month:  十二月 (shí èr yuè) – twelfth month

Day:  廿二日 (niàn èr rì) – the twenty second day (廿 = 20)

Hour: 戌时 (xū shí) – 7:00-9:00 PM

終於戊辰年十月十八日子时

Event:  終於 (zhōng yú) – died on…

Year: 戊辰 (wù chén) – 1808 (Determining this year took some extrapolation because the imperial title or reign title is not mentioned.  If the death occurred during the reign title of 乾隆 (qián lóng), this person would have died in 1748, at the age of 8, which is not logical for a person who was married and begat two children.  The year 1808, during the reign title of 嘉慶 (jiā qìng) for the year of death makes much more logical sense.  The next possibility would be the year 1868, which would mean the person lived until the unlikely age of 128.)

Month:  十月 (shí yuè) – tenth month

Day:  十八日 (shí bā rì) – the eighteenth day

Hour: 子时 (zǐ shí) – 11:00 PM - 1:00 AM

The revered Mr. Dáráng’s dates of birth and death converted to the Western calendar are as follows:

Born:  20 January (not 22 December) 1740

Died:  5 December (not 18 October) 1808

Please note the months and the days of the Chinese calendar differ from that of the Western calendar. The months of the Chinese calendar are lunar months, beginning on the new moon and ending the day before the next new moon. The number of charts needed to convert the Chinese months and days to Western months and days corresponding to the number of years represented in “The 60 Year Cyclical Calendar” chart would fill many of volumes of books. The Academia Sinica in Taiwan has posted on the Internet an automated Chinese-to-Western calendar converter tool that covers 2,000 years: http://sinocal.sinica.edu.tw. The dates above were converted using this tool.

Traditional Chinese
All documents linked to from this section are in Traditional Chinese.

Many records will be in Traditional Chinese, regardless of in what area the record was created, as the simplified Chinese was only introduced in the mid 20th Century. However, in practical use today, traditional Chinese characters are only used in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and expatriate areas in other countries.

Introduction

How to start Chinese Research

How to use PAF 5.2 Chinese Version

How to use online Chinese Catalog

Simplified Chinese
All documents linked to from this section are in Simplified Chinese.

Simplified Chinese appears on modern records only, since the mid 20th Century. That was the time the Chinese government (Peoples Republic of China) made it official and it is the most common form used there today, although there are still many who know traditional Chinese. Simplified Chinese is not as widely known in expatriate areas, or areas like Hong Kong or Macau. and outside of the immediate area of China itself, it is only used in Malaysia officially.

Introduction

How to start Chinese research

How to use PAF 5.2 Chinese version

How to use online Chinese Catalog