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Duke Hu of Chen (Chinese: 陈胡公 or 胡公满; Chinese: 陳胡公 or 胡公滿; pinyin: Chén Hú Gōng or Hu Gong Man; fl. 11th century BC) was the posthumous title given to Gui Man (Chinese: 媯滿, with "Man" being his given name and "Gui" being his ancestral temple surname) by his father-in-law, King Wu of Zhou, who founded the Zhou dynasty in 1046 BC. Duke Hu was the founder of the Chen state, a dynastic vassal state of the Zhou dynasty located in modern-day eastern Henan.

During the Western Zhou, commoners began to be identified by their place of residence, which would go on to become their lineage surname. As the first ruler of Chen state, Duke Hu is therefore regarded as the originator of the surname Chen, one of the more prevalent family names in China, although he is not directly related as apical ancestor to many of the people who carry the name. After being granted the posthumous title of Duke Hu, his descendants began to use Hu as their surname. It was common during this time for descendants to take the posthumous title as their lineage surname, just as it was common, if not more so, to use a place name as a surname. Duke Hu of Chen is thus also considered a founding ancestor of those with the surname Hu. The rulers of the Hồ (Hu) dynasty of Vietnam claimed to be Duke Hu's descendants.

Biography

Duke Hu was said to be a descendant of the legendary sage king Emperor Shun. His father Efu (閼父) served as taozheng (陶正), the official in charge of the manufacture of pottery, for the Zhou state. King Wu of Zhou thought highly of Efu, and gave his eldest daughter, Da Ji (大姬), to Efu's son Man in marriage.

After King Wu conquered the Shang dynasty to establish the Zhou dynasty in 1046/45 BC, he enfeoffed the descendants of three ancient sage kings in the newly conquered land, known as the San Ke (三恪, "Three Reverent States"), and Man was enfeoffed at the state of Chen, with its capital at Wanqiu, in modern Huaiyang County, Henan Province.

After Duke Hu died, he was succeeded by his son Xihou (犀侯), posthumously known as Duke Shēn of Chen. After the death of Duke Shēn, a younger son of Chen, Gaoyang (皋羊), ascended the throne, to be known as Duke Xiang of Chen.

Family

Wife: Daji (大姬), Zhou Wuwang's eldest daughter

Children

• Chen Shengong (陳申公), older son, 2nd ruler of Chen
• Chen Xianggong (陳相公), younger son, 3rd ruler of Chen

Legacy

Duke Hu is honoured as the founding ancestor of the Chen surname, which originated in the state of Chen. As of 2020, Chen is the 5th most common surname in China and 4th most common in the world, shared by 70 million people within the country and over 100 million people worldwide (in 2014, there were 54 million in China and 80 million worldwide).

Duke Hu's descendants adopted his posthumous name Hu as their surname, and Duke Hu is considered the primogenitor of the Hu clan, the 15th most common surname in China. Dozens of other surnames, including Tian, Yuan, and Che, originated as branches of the Hu surname.

The Chen clan would later found the Chen dynasty of China and then the Trần dynasty (陈朝), a golden age of Vietnam. (Trần is the Vietnamese pronunciation of Chen).

In 1400 AD, Hồ Quý Ly overthrew the Trần dynasty and established the Hồ dynasty. Hồ is the Vietnamese pronunciation for Hú (胡). He claimed to be a descendant of Duke Hu and Emperor Shun, and changed the name of Vietnam from Đại Việt to Đại Ngu (大虞), or Great Ngu (Ngu is the Vietnamese pronunciation for Yú (虞), the legendary pre-enthronement fief of Emperor Shun).

Tomb

Duke Hu's tomb was said to be made of iron and buried under water near the Dragon Lake in Huaiyang County. Archaeologists have found Western Zhou era pottery shards and Warring States-era roof tiles in the area. In 1995, Singaporean businessman Chen Yonghe (陳永和) donated funds to build a new mausoleum and temple complex for Hu/Chen in Huaiyang, and it has become a popular pilgrimage site for people of Chen, Hu, and other surnames that originated in the state of Chen.

Memorial

A memorial of Chen Hu Gong (陈胡公纪念堂) has been built in Fuzhou, capital of Fujian.

References

Citations

1. Du Ruofu (杜若甫) (1986). "Surnames in China". Journal of Chinese Linguistics. 14 (2): 319. JSTOR 23767123.
2. ^ Yang 2003, p. 121.
3. Han 2010, pp. 2776–7.
4. Han 2010, pp. 2778–9.
5. ^ 陳姓源于淮陽 陳胡公是得姓始祖及舜帝的後裔 [Chen surname originated in Huaiyang, Duke Hu of Chen is the founding ancestor and a descendant of Emperor Shun] (in Chinese). Xinhua News Agency. 22 March 2014. Archived from the original on May 29, 2015.
6. 胡姓起源 [Origin of the Hu surname]. Great China Genealogy (in Chinese). Retrieved 28 May 2015.
7. ^ 陈氏遍天下, 淮阳是老家-陈胡公陵园 [Mausoleum of Duke Hu of Chen] (in Chinese). Henan Provincial Government. 3 May 2012. Archived from the original on 29 May 2015.
8. Ngô 1479, p. 296.
9. "福建省陈氏委员会新春茶话会". 陈胡公文化网. 2016-02-22. Archived from the original on 2016-10-26.

Sources

• Han, Zhaoqi, ed. (2010). "Houses of Chen and Qi". Shiji 史记 (in Chinese). Zhonghua Book Company. ISBN 978-7-101-07272-3.
• Ngô, Sĩ Liên (1479). Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư [Complete Annals of Dai Viet] (in Vietnamese).
• Yang, Kuan (2003). Xi Zhou Shi 西周史 [History of the Western Zhou] (in Chinese). Shanghai People's Publishing House. ISBN 978-7-208-04538-5.

• Monarchs of Chen (state)
• 11th-century BC Chinese monarchs
• Founding monarchs