### Migration and Distribution The Shen (申) surname originated in present-day Nanyang, Henan. In the early Spring and Autumn Period, the Shen State was quickly annexed by the powerful State of Chu. It is very likely that the descendants of Boyi soon adopted the name of the state as their surname, becoming the Shen clan. According to many scholars, there were many people with the Shen surname in the State of Chu during the pre-Qin era, presumably for this very reason. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, there was a gathering of famous people with the Shen surname. The main representatives included Shen Bo, Shen Buhai, Shen Yu, Shen Zhou, Shen Xi, Shen Li, Shen Kuai, Shen Cheng, Shen Shuyi, etc. These famous figures were distributed across the states of Lu, Zheng, Chu, Han, Jin, and Wu, indicating that the Shen clan was already spread across present-day Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Hubei, Hebei, and Jiangsu at that time. In the Western Han Dynasty, there were still many famous people with the Shen surname. It is necessary to mention Shen Dang from Yueyang (now Liyang, Jiangsu) and Shen Shuo from Cangwu (now in Guangxi), which shows that by this time, some people with the Shen surname had moved to the southernmost part of the motherland - Guangxi. From this period to the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Shen clan members from Donghai recorded in historical records were Shen Xian, Shen Zhuan, and Shen Jun, laying the foundation for the formation of the Langya County's prominent Shen clan in the later period. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Shen Yi entered Sichuan. The period of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties was a crucial stage in the development history of the Shen clan. During this period, the three major prominent lineages in the history of the Shen clan - the Weijun, Langya, and Danyang lineages - began to form and gradually prospered, strongly promoting the development of the Shen clan in the provinces that covered these lineages, such as Hebei, Shandong, and Anhui. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, a branch of the Shen clan migrated from Hubei to Shaozhou (now Shaoyang, Hunan), and another branch moved from Danyang to Xinzhou (now in Jiangxi). From the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms to the Song Dynasty, the Shen clan members were widely distributed across the southern provinces such as Jiangsu, Hubei, Hunan, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Sichuan. In the early Ming Dynasty, the Shen clan from Shanxi was one of the surnames of the migrants from Hongtong Big Pagoda Tree. They were resettled in present-day Henan, Hebei, Shandong, Beijing, Tianjin, etc. At this time, some people with the Shen surname had moved to present-day Fujian, Guangdong, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi. In the early Qing Dynasty, some people from the Shen clan in Fujian and Guangdong began to move to Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Europe, and America. Also, some from Henan and Shandong moved to Northeast China. Today, the Shen surname is widely distributed across the country, especially in Henan and Shandong. The Shen clan in these two provinces accounts for about 43% of the total Han people with the Shen surname in the country. The Shen surname ranks 123rd among the Chinese surnames today, with a relatively large population, accounting for about 0.11% of the total Han population in the country.

Shen Kuo (1029–1093) Style name: Cunzhong. A native of Qiantang in the Song Dynasty (now Hang County, Zhejiang Province). He was a man of many talents, well - versed in astronomy, local chronicles, calendar, music, medicine, and mathematics. He once served as an envoy to the Khitan. He was the author of works such as *Dream Pool Essays* and *Changxing Collection*. Shen Zhou (1427–1509) Style name: Qinan, also known as Master Shitian and also as the Old Man Baishi. A native of Changzhou in the Ming Dynasty (now Wu County, Jiangsu Province). In his youth, he studied under Chen Mengxian. As he grew older, he had a comprehensive knowledge of classics and had excellent skills in both poetry and prose. He was especially good at painting. He was one of the Four Great Masters of the Ming Dynasty, along with Tang Yin, Wen Zhengming, and Qiu Ying. He was the author of works such as *News from the Guest Seat*, *Shitian Collection*, and *Shitian Poetry Anthology*.

Migration and Distribution (Lack of information) The Shen surname is not listed among the top 100 surnames in the Chinese Hundred Family Surnames in both the Chinese mainland and Taiwan. There are two theories about the origin of the Shen clan. One theory holds that the Shen clan descends from Qin Huali, a student of Mozi from the State of Wei during the Warring States period. Since Qin Huali's courtesy name was "Shenzi", his descendants adopted the surname Shen following the custom of "taking the grandfather's courtesy name as the clan name". The "Records of Worthies and Friends" states: "Qin Huali, with the courtesy name Shenzi, took his courtesy name as the surname." The other theory is that the Shen clan "took the place name as the clan name". According to the "Compilation of Surname Research", during the Spring and Autumn period, there was a place called Shen County in the State of Chu, which was the fief of Lord Bai. The descendants of the people there took the place name as their clan name, and their notable ancestry was from Tianshui. According to historical documentary research, the Shenyi in the State of Chu was located in the northwest of present - day Yingshang County, Anhui Province. The prominent clan of this surname was based in Tianshui Commandery (south - west of present - day Tongwei County, Gansu Province).

Migration and Distribution (Information missing) The Shen surname is not listed among the top 100 surnames in both the Chinese mainland and Taiwan. The Shen surname originated from the Ni surname. In ancient times, Yan Di was a well - known tribal chief. Among his descendants, there was an outstanding tribal chief named Zhu Rong. Legend has it that he was the first to invent and use fire, thus ending the era when people ate raw meat and drank blood. Therefore, he was respected as the God of Fire. Zhu Rong's descendants were divided into eight major surnames, and Shen was one of them. Yu the Great made great contributions to flood control and was highly respected by the people. So, Shun abdicated the position of tribal chief to Yu. Later, Yu passed the throne to his son Qi, who established the Xia Dynasty and was known as Xia Qi. Xia Qi enfeoffed his illegitimate son Zhi in Shen (southeast of present - day Heyang County, Shaanxi Province). Zhi's descendants took the name of the fief as their surname, and this is another origin of the Shen surname today.