cháo 晁

Migration and Distribution (Not available) The Chao surname is not among the top 100 surnames in the Mainland and Taiwan. The Chao surname originated from the Ji surname. During the Spring and Autumn Period, King Jing of Zhou doted on his youngest son, Prince Chao. Just as he was about to make Prince Chao the crown prince, he suddenly died of an illness. In the few years after King Jing's death, several princes fought fiercely with each other for the throne. Finally, with the intervention of the State of Jin, Prince Gou secured the throne and became King Jing of Zhou. Prince Chao fled to the State of Chu, and his descendants took the surname Chao. Since "Chao" is an ancient form of "Zhao", the surname Chao was also written as Chao. The prominent families of the Chao surname lived in Yingchuan (around present-day Changge and Xuchang in Henan Province) and Jingzhao (east of present-day Chang'an in Shaanxi Province).