liào 廖

### Migration and Distribution The Liao surname originated in Henan Province. The "Runan Commandery", the largest and most prominent administrative division in the history of the Liao surname, was initially established here. It goes without saying that the Liao clan in Henan was prosperous at that time. During the Qin and Han dynasties, some Liao people began to migrate to neighboring areas. One branch of the descendants of Bo Liao formed the Julu Commandery. In addition, according to "The Preface of the Origin of the Liao Clan", Liao Hui, a descendant of the Liao family in Runan, migrated to Henan to avoid the turmoil of the Qin Dynasty. During the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, following the "Disturbances of Yongjia", the Liao people in the north migrated southward in large numbers. During this period, Liao Hua, a descendant of Liao Hui, moved from Xiangyang (now Xiangfan, Hubei Province) to Sichuan and became the first ancestor of the Liao family in Sichuan. Descended from Liao Shizhang, who lived in Nanjing, Jiangsu, his two sons moved to Luoyang and Yongjia, Zhejiang respectively. Descended from Liao Yanling, who served as the governor of Wuwei (now in Gansu Province). In addition, Liao Tang, a hermit in the Jin Dynasty, was from Jiangle (now in Fujian Province) and was the first person with the Liao surname to enter Fujian. During the Tang Dynasty, many Liao people moved to Fujian. In the early Tang Dynasty, some Liao people followed Chen Yuanguang and his son to develop Zhangzhou and entered Fujian. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, some Liao people followed Wang Chao and Wang Shenzhi into Fujian. One branch of Liao Hui's descendants reached Liao Chongde, who served as the magistrate of Qianhua in Jiangxi. His descendants then moved to the Shibi Stockade in Ninghua, Tingzhou, Fujian, and further to places such as Shanghang. In the Song Dynasty, the Liao clan had become one of the prominent families in Fujian, producing many well - known scholars. The "Xing Liao Clan Genealogy" clearly describes the migration of Liao Hui's branch before the Yuan Dynasty: "Their ancestors lived in Runan. During the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, due to the wars in the north, they migrated to various parts of the south. In the Tang Dynasty, their ancestors moved from Yudu, Jiangxi to the Shibi Stockade in Ninghua, Tingzhou, Fujian to avoid the turmoil at the end of the Tang Dynasty. Later, due to the chaos, their descendants moved to Shunchang, and the number of Liao people in Fujian increased. By the end of the Song Dynasty, they moved from Ninghua through Changting, Shanghang, and Yongding to Guangdong - including Dapu, Meixian, Xingning, and Wuhua." In the Ming Dynasty, the Liao people from the Great Pagoda Tree in Shanxi migrated to Hebei, Henan, Jiangsu, Beijing and other places. In the Qing Dynasty, some Liao people from Fujian and Guangdong moved to Taiwan and then migrated to Thailand, Singapore and other places. Today, the Liao surname is more common in Jiangxi, Hunan, Sichuan, Guangxi, and Guangdong provinces. The Liao people in these five provinces account for approximately 73% of the Han Liao population in China. The Liao surname ranks 66th among the Chinese surnames today, with a relatively large population, accounting for about 0.34% of the Han population in China.