Key events in the history of the Zhao (赵) surname

11 dated events in the history of the Zhao (赵) surname, as recorded in Chinese sources.

1. Western Zhou dynasty (西周)

   Zaofu (造父) presented fine horses to King Mu of Zhou (周穆王) and assisted him in suppressing the rebellion of Xu Yanwang (徐偃王), earning enfeoffment at Zhaocheng (赵城) and thus initiating the Zhao (赵) clan name.

2. At the time of the Zhao state’s (赵国) demise

   Before the Zhao state’s (赵国) collapse, the Zhao (赵) surname had already spread across Zhaocheng (赵城), Geng (耿), Yuan (原), Jinyang (晋阳), Dai (代), Handan (邯郸), Wucheng (武城), and Zhen Ding (真定), covering present-day Shanxi (山西), Hebei (河北), Henan (河南), Shandong (山东), and parts of Shaanxi (陕西) and Inner Mongolia (内蒙古).

3. Qin dynasty (秦朝)

   After the Qin dynasty (秦朝) conquered the Dai state (代国), Dai King Zhao Jia (代王赵嘉) was exiled to the Western Rong (西戎) region, where his descendants settled in Tianshui Commandery (天水郡), forming the Tianshui Zhao (天水赵氏) lineage; Zhao Wang Qian (赵王迁), the last king of Zhao (赵国), was banished to Fangxian (房县), and his descendants flourished in Hubei (湖北).

4. Late Qin dynasty (秦朝末年)

   Zhao Tuo (赵佗) of Zhen Ding (真定) established the Nanyue Kingdom (南越国), spreading the Zhao (赵) surname to Guangdong and Guangxi (两广) and northern Vietnam.

5. Song dynasty (宋朝)

   The Zhuo Jun Zhao (涿郡赵氏) lineage became the imperial family of the Song dynasty (宋朝), tracing its ancestry back to Zhao Wang Qian (赵王迁).

6. Jin dynasty (金朝)

   During the Jin dynasty (金朝), some Jurchens (女真) already bore the Zhao (赵) surname, as recorded: ‘Among Jin people’s surnames, Wozhun (斡准) is called Zhao (赵).’

7. Ming dynasty (明朝)

   Zhao An (赵安) of Dongningwei (东宁卫) and Zhao Suoluo Gu (赵锁罗骨), leader of the Jianzhou Jurchens (建州女真), adopted the Zhao (赵) surname.

8. Jiaqing reign period of the Qing dynasty (清朝嘉庆年间)

   During the Jiaqing reign period (嘉庆年间) of the Qing dynasty (清朝), members of the imperial Aisin Gioro clan changed their surname to Zhao (赵) because Zhao (赵) is the first character in the Hundred Family Surnames (《百家姓》).

9. 1985

   According to South Korean statistics in 1985, there were 877,050 people with the Zhao (赵) surname nationwide, belonging to 54 bon-gwan (clan origins).

10. 2000

    By 2000, the number of Zhao (赵) surname bearers in South Korea had increased to 983,969, distributed across 68 bon-gwan (clan origins).

11. 2014

    A 2014 study by Fudan University, using Y-chromosome analysis, ruled out the possibility that the Aisin Gioro (爱新觉罗) paternal lineage originated from the Northern Song dynasty (北宋) Zhao (赵) clan.